Making A Killing
by HeathenVampires
Summary: Modern AU. One stalks the streets, a vigilante killer known as the Night Fury. One writes gripping, bloody mysteries with some surprisingly specific details. Guess which one the police have their eye on? Serial Killer/Writer Hiccstrid Hiccup/Astrid. Warnings for blood, death, violence, murder... all that stuff.
1. Chapter 1

**So, that writing-prompts thing about a serial killer and a writer dating...**

**Here it is! Largely formed by a few people on the ATOV discord server.  
**

**The fic will be dark, though I don't _plan _on the kill scenes being in excruciating detail or anything, there will be like, a serial killer character so if you're squeamish or looking for the fluffiest fluff ever... this isn't it for you.**

**Is a Hiccstrid fic. Will more than likely contain smut in future. Expect erratic updates. **

-HTTYD-

"So, there's been a murder. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?"

Astrid raised an eyebrow at the oversized moron in front of her.

"Excuse me? What would I know about a _murder?"_

Having police officers turn up at her workplace had been _surreal. _Even more so that they were there to talk about a _murder. _Astrid hoped she wasn't fired. Then she'd be forced to kill the copper in front of her for costing her a half-decent job that supported her in between books.

"Because you wrote it."

A copy of her book - only published a few months ago, and not exactly tearing up the Bestsellers lists - landed on the table in front of her. In an _evidence bag. _It was like... like... like a scene from a book or TV show. She couldn't help it. She laughed.

"Are you kidding me?"

"This is a serious matter Miss Hofferson."

"How, exactly? You think I killed someone because I wrote a killer in a book? Next you'll arrest Bram Stoker for vampirism. When was this supposed to have happened, exactly?"

They weren't enamoured with her attitude, Astrid could tell. If they tried anything else, she'd be pulling the 'am I under arrest' card right away, but if they gave her a time and she could disprove it, she hoped it would get them to leave her alone.

"Three nights ago, at..." he checked a folder "a quarter past midnight. Where were you at that time?"

"Tuesday... probably crying over my keyboard."

"You were what?"

"I was writing."

"Can anyone verify that?"

Astrid rolled her eyes.

"No, I live alone. But you can check with my service provider that I was online, googling how quickly somebody can bleed out from various arteries."

"Excuse me?"

"Like I said. I was writing. I'm working on my next book. Check with my service provider. I'm free to go, right?"

Reluctantly, they had to let her go since Astrid wasn't under arrest. Stepping back outside, she rolled her eyes some more, stretched after the horrid chair they gave her left her stiff, then headed back to work. Her shift was over, but Astrid thought she should check back with her boss. She'd probably find it hilarious - she'd read Astrid's book after all.

"They really thought that?"

"Apparently! Do I look like a murderer?"

Her boss looked her up and down, shrugging with a short laugh.

"Depends on the day. Don't worry about it, see you tomorrow. Try not to turn to a life of crime."

"No promises!"

Astrid left feeling relieved she wasn't in trouble with the boss, then headed home after a stop off at the shop. She was out of coffee, and writers lived on caffeine. That and wine, but she had work early the next day. Getting drunk was not her wisest thought. A lazy meal of reheated rice and chicken later, Astrid had changed into her pyjamas again and was back at her keyboard, ready to emotionally bleed on the keyboard and type until she passed out from exhaustion.

Not that she wrote anything beyond repeatedly typing and deleting "_I HATE WRITERS BLOCK!" _over and over again. But some nights were like that. She did look up a list of fancy knives though, and that led to a list of rare foods, followed by most popular alcohol all around the world... three hours later, Astrid's eyes burned from the screen glare and she'd gotten nothing done. Resigning herself, she downed her cold coffee and went to brush her teeth before bed.

Naturally, she got several new ideas as soon as she tried to sleep. Astrid was prepared, scribbled them in the notepad she kept next to her bed for that very purpose. A few more notes went down, handwriting a total mess as they were done when she'd not quite opened her eyes, let alone had coffee. Astrid glanced at her bed, saw the stuffed animal that slept on the side where most people would probably keep a girlfriend or boyfriend.

How did _anyone _think she was a killer?

Hel, Astrid only left the house for work or to go to the gym/running. And sometimes for pastries from the bakery, because she was friends with one of the girls who worked there and got discounts on her danish treats. When did she have time to go on a killing spree, really? Astrid had looked up the event in question she'd been quizzed over, and apparently they were tracking a serial killer.

For all her research in murders to write her book, Astrid hadn't been aware a serial killer was 'working' so close to where she lived. They'd been getting away with it a while, it seemed. There were several articles on the killer, dubbed 'Night Fury' by the papers as they always attacked in the dark, and usually so viciously the victims were barely recognisable. The only identifier they had was that the Night Fury always found a patch of bare skin, and left a burned brand there in the shape of a dragon. A peculiar calling card, but Astrid knew it wasn't exactly easy to put rationality on the actions of a killer.

_Stop it. _

Her writer brain wanted to talk to the Night Fury. They sounded fascinating from a psychological point of view. Then Astrid applied some logic, and remembered they might well kill her. She read more. The police had _no _leads, really. They tried to spin it, but this one was incredibly elusive, and nobody had worked out their pattern. They killed in different ways, sometimes with a knife, some choked, some beaten...

The only advice to keep safe from the Night Fury at night?

"_Hide and pray they do not find you."_

Which was extraordinarily unhelpful, when she thought about it. At least most of his victims were men - Astrid found one that attributed fifteen kills to him, others reckoned even more, but only four had been women. All with boyfriends or girlfriends they were suspected of abusing... perhaps the Night Fury was a vigilante type. Astrid closed the tab on her screen.

Then googled the name again.

Her mother was right. She _did_ like serial killers too much. But Astrid was nothing if not committed, and she had books to write and a publisher deadline to meet. She was... researching. It wasn't like she was going to go out at night, hoping to run into them...

Astrid was considerably more knowledgeable on the matter when the police wanted to talk to her again. That time, they quizzed her about people she knew - Astrid now knew they were asking about the victims, trying to make connections. They failed miserably; Astrid was not social enough to know that many people, only one had gone to the same gym as her and she'd never seen him there. And she had alibis she could remember for three others.

"Then how did you get these details?"

"I wrote that book _before _the murder you pulled me in for before. This book is available to the general public. Maybe _they _got the idea from me. But I don't know. I am assuming there's a finite amount of ways to murder someone, and you're intentionally being sketchy with details in the hopes I'll slip up and say something 'only the killer would know' or whatever" Astrid made sure to add air quotes, so they understood her contempt "and honestly it's ridiculous. You know it isn't me. I'm leaving."

"Don't leave town Miss Hofferson."

"I barely even leave my desk."

She left the station with no official murder charges, which she supposed was a good thing, and headed for the bus. Since it was her day off, the police had interrupted Astrid's very busy plans of heading to the shop for food. Tugging her phone out of her pocket, Astrid scrolled through the contact list and tapped on Ruff's number. She'd find it _hilarious _that Astrid had been questioned for murder. _Again._

* * *

"You need to be careful."

He rolled his eyes as she gestured to the newspaper, only a few lines on page five about the Night Fury this time.

"I haven't been caught yet. Have you taken your meds?"

Hiccup asked his mother, who nodded and glared but eventually let him help her stand up. He cared for her, but she was also where his stubborn nature had come from. Their house was aid-adapted for them both - downstairs bathrooms and bedrooms, grab rails, everything spaced to allow wheelchairs through since both he and his mother used them sometimes. Valka had mobility problems, Hiccup wore a prosthetic leg.

"Go lay down. I won't be gone long. Do you need anything?"

"If they have those little marshmallow things..."

"Do I ever forgot the marshmallow things? Come on mom, I know you too well."

Ensuring Valka was in her bed to get some rest, Hiccup bade her goodbye and grabbed his jacket from the rack, shrugged a backpack over his shoulders. It was light out, his mother had no reason to worry.

Hiccup was the _Night _Fury after all.

Making his way to the bus stop, Hiccup saw only one neighbour, but then they lived on one of those quirky roads with only a couple of houses dotted along. The house next to theirs was empty, had been for years. It seemed a waste.

He could drive, but only did that for big shopping trips. They were only out of a few things, and he had a disability bus pass so technically, the bus was cheaper than driving and since it wasn't cold out, nothing really ached too much. He got on the bus, then off at the pharmacy, picked up the prescriptions and tried to ignore the overly friendly pharmacist who wanted to set Hiccup up with their daughter.

_Trust me, I'm not the sort of man you want her to bring home._

There was an electronics shop near the pharmacy, and Hiccup caught sight of the news, complete with the police yet again searching for leads and urging the public to come forward if they knew anything about the terrible, terrible murder that happened.

Why would anyone know anything? Hiccup was good at eluding witnesses.

He got on the next bus, groaning inwardly when he saw it was almost full. There were two pushchairs, so no disabled seating. Hiccup did so hate having to sit next to other people, they never had sense of personal space and they were always on phones, being loud and just generally making him twitchy. Hiccup wasn't much a fan of people. Though he supposed that wasn't a surprise, given what he'd done to quite a few by then.

Glancing around, he spotted someone looking out of the window, and on their phone. They ought to leave him alone at least. Perching on the seat, Hiccup leant back and tried to zone out the hustle and bustle around him.

"-right down to the way he was hit around the head with a pipe, apparently."

_That _got his attention. Hiccup glanced at the woman sat next to him, though he could only really see blonde hair and a slim, toned arm. Everything else was turned away or covered by clothes. He looked away, but listened more closely. He'd hit someone in the head with a pipe recently. That couldn't be a coincidence. The woman waited for whoever was on the other end to answer, then continued.

"Well yeah, it was a good way to kill them. Disfiguring too. And then there was the brand..."

Hiccup frowned as she continued. The details were a little too familiar... Did she _know_ something? He never hunted in daylight, but still... this woman needed to be checked out. It wouldn't do to get sloppy now. That could have gotten him caught. Then there'd be nobody to take care of his mother.

"I gotta go, call you later."

Blonde woman was done on the phone. She turned to Hiccup, and he'd be _lying _if he said he didn't notice she was pretty. Big blue eyes ran over his face, soft pink lips parting to speak.

"This is my stop."

"Oh. Mine too."

It wasn't. Hiccup got up anyway, making his way down the middle of the seats with her close behind him. They both got off when the bus stopped, Hiccup surreptitously eyeing the direction she went while pretending to check something on his phone. He spared a second to wonder how people pretended to be distracted before mobile phones were commonplace.

Then he followed her. Hiccup was pretty good at not being noticed.

She walked on to a supermarket. That was handy enough, he supposed. Hiccup did his shopping while keeping an eye on her, barely remembering his mothers marshmallow treats before he managed to get behind blonde woman at the till. Maybe he could catch sight of an ID in her purse... she was buying alcohol. He was in luck. Hiccup apologised as he leant across a little too close to her to reach for a bottle of water, and managed to spot her name on the drivers license.

_Hofferson, Astrid._

He paid for his things after her, name tucked away in his brain to look up later. Hiccup was good on a computer. If she was a police offers daughter or a forensic scientist in training? He'd know very soon...

She was waiting outside. For him.

"Are you following me?"

Hiccup shook his head.

"No. Shopping."

"So its coincidence that you sat next to me, got off at my stop, walked just far enough behind me that I wasn't supposed to notice and then you were behind me at the till?"

With her arms crossed, pretty mouth pulled into a frown, Hiccup was pretty sure she was rumbled.

"I wasn't following you."

"Riiiight. I'm a writer, by the way."

Hiccup frowned in confusion.

"What?"

"What you overheard. On the bus. I'm a writer. I was talking about a book I was working on."

_Oh. A book._

"I suppose thats reassuring."

"Tell that to the cops. They pulled me in for questioning cus there was a murder like my story a little while ago."

Hiccup winced inwardly. That was kinda his bad, he supposed. How was he supposed to know someone had written it? He wasn't much a fan of murder mysteries. They always seemed to end in the killer getting caught, and usually for a stupid reason. Hiccup didn't make stupid mistakes.

"Should I be worried?"

Astrid Hofferson smiled. She had a pretty smile.

"Nah. I don't think you're the Night Fury's type."

Hiccup bit the inside of his cheek to keep from saying something stupid.

"What's the name of your book?"

"Broken. It's kinda lame, but the publisher and editor just sorta... talked over me about it. I guess it fits the focus of the killer. Still, first books are rarely perfect. You can buy it in there if you're curious."

Astrid Hofferson gestured to the shop they had just exited.

"I will."

She smiled again, then reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone. Hiccup was very confused when she presented it to him, 'New Contact' tab open.

"What's this for?"

"I wanna ask if you liked it."

Hiccup knew it was a bad idea - then again, wasn't murder? - but he liked the spark in her eye and the curve of her smile. So he took the phone. Typed in his number, and added a name.

"Hiccup? Really? Please tell me thats a nickname."

"It is. How did you know I wouldn't just run off with your phone?"

"I didn't. But I did know you'd never outrun me."

The challenge in her face made his stomach flutter. Hiccup smiled back, the expression feeling almost foreign on his face to anyone other than his mother.

"I better go pick up that book then."

"Catch you later Hiccup. You'll be hearing from me."

She _winked, _and then she left. Hiccup stared after her, wondering what the hel had just happened. Then he turned around and went to buy her book. If nothing else, he needed to see how similar their murders really were.

He headed home, book feeling like it weighed a ton in his backpack where it was wedged between teabags, milk and peanut butter. Valka was still sleeping, so he put the book on the table, packed away the shopping and made a cup of tea, opening his laptop next to his book and getting to work looking this Astrid Hofferson up. It seemed she really was just a writer from what he found. Boring job, probably to make ends meet while she worked on her writing career. Parents alive, but again with the unremarkable jobs. No relatives in law enforcement at all. Her bank statements showed a lot of payments for pastry, coffee and a gym membership, but other than that... he couldn't find much.

"Hey mom."

"Hello Hiccup. What are you doing?"

"Checking this girl isn't stalking me."

His mother gave a passing sound of assent, then did a double take.

"Excuse me?"

He showed her the book, elaborated on the strange turn of events while Valka chewed on little fluffy sweets.

"I was just about to read it, but since you're up let me take a look at your scar."

She sighed, but lifted her jumper to expose the smattering of marks across her side and back, each one Hiccup remembered seeing her get the original injury of. He'd never forget the hissing, crackling, the _stench _of skin burning where his stepfather amused himself by putting out lit cigarettes on his wife. Of course, Hiccup relived those moments, experienced that smell again when he went out at night. Each time felt like a catharsis, though the feeling never lasted. There were other scars too, some which troubled her and one a recent one from an operation on her back, trying to repair some of the damage done to her before. It had been tough healing, so Hiccup had to keep an eye on it.

"Looks good. You have a check up next week, remember."

"I know."

He made fresh tea for he and his mother, then a peanut butter sandwich before heading out with Valka to sit in the garden. It wasn't much of one, and it was poorly maintained but they had grass and backyard chickens, and it got the sun on their faces without having to go far. Chewing on his sandwich, Hiccup started reading.

-HTTYD-

**I wonder how many people saw the first line of the top authors note and expected _Astrid _to be the serial killer... heheh.**


	2. Chapter 2

**If you missed all the warning signs in chapter one, this fic contains a serial killer (affectionately known as Serialcup) and so, probably not for the squeamish faint of heart.**

**Rather than content warn every chapter, I'm gonna do with the "what did you expect" after this - any chapter could contain violence, murder, blood, death, memories of abuse... or smut. That'll turn up eventually.  
**

-HTTYD-

Hiccup could feel the itch under his skin, that twist in his gut that would be soothed by only one thing. The doctors office was not a good place to be feeling it, but at least it wasn't _his _appointment. Valka was getting a check up after her recent surgery, and just a general look over her growing list of medical complaints.

If he hadn't already put the bastard in the ground, Hiccup would probably think about killing his stepfather again just for what he'd done to his mother. Leaning back, Hiccup relived that first moment while he waited. He was still barely out of boyhood really, a long gangly thing with strength he'd not realised he had as he grabbed the knife. It was all he could do to save his mother by then; Hiccup knew it had been a really bad one, remembered the fact he barely recognised his mothers face after that particular beating. And still, when his stepfather laid on the ground between them, bleeding...

Valka had been comforting _him. _There was shock, of course, but mother cradled son until they had to decide what to do. Hiccup patched his mother up - something he was horrifyingly used to by then, hospital visits rare and risky when there was a victims shame, a desire not to let anyone else know. By then she was already on heavy painkillers for a poorly healed broken leg that caused her to limp, which Hiccup had to hide in his room so his stepfather couldn't take them just to make Valka suffer.

They waited until night, dragged the body out back and buried him together. Hiccup thought they could probably have made a very strong case for self-defence, given how both their bodies bore the signs of years of abuse, the fact his mother was beaten black and blue but... they'd kept the secret for too long.

That was when it started.

It was a couple of years before anything _really _reared up inside him. For a while they just continued on, committed to keeping the secret. Hiccup cared for his mother around going to school, though he'd missed many days for injuries or being locked in the basement, forced to listen to his mother being hurt. If Alvin had felt especially sadistic, he'd take Hiccup's leg and leave him down there, forcing the teen to hop or crawl, sometimes for days at a time. Oddly, Hiccup now found darkness comforting in a way. Not always... he'd installed many lights in the basement, where he worked on things, but the late night walks weren't just for hunting.

Hiccup was fifteen when he killed his stepfather.

He was seventeen when once wasn't enough anymore.

He'd put his mother to bed, body almost seeming to act by itself that first time as he picked out dark clothes, tugged a hat over his messy hair, heading out and just walking... he didn't feel his leg ache, despite the fact he was close to outgrowing his current prosthetic. It must have been a couple of _hours _before he found what he hadn't known he was looking for.

"No! Stop!"

The area around was pretty deserted. The panicked female voice would find only him. Years of putting himself between Alvin and Valka meant Hiccup had a pretty poor sense of self-preservation by then.

He went toward the sound.

The man was easily twice his size, and didn't seem to notice Hiccup watching as he tore at the womans business suit. Hiccup looked around. Picked up a rock. He felt oddly... calm, he supposed, as he approached the man. The woman saw him, mouth open in a soundless scream as Hiccup swung the rock, weight impacting the delicate temple area and with an incredibly satisfying _thud, _the man hit the ground.

"Get out of here!"

His voice didn't belong to him as he ordered the woman to leave, pulling her torn clothes around herself as she fled. The man on the ground twitched. Hiccup held the rock tighter, and he brought it down over and over and _over, _until the mans face was a bloody, unrecognisable mess. He'd stopped moving a while ago, and when Hiccup felt for a pulse there was none. A packet of cigarettes had fallen out at some point... Hiccup opened the packet, found a lighter. The spark of flame showed blood all over his hands, a few drops falling from his face and smearing over the cigarette filter as Hiccup drew on it a few times, getting it lit.

There were no screams as he put it to skin, no violent attempts to escape but for a second, Hiccup felt the sickening weight of seeing his mother hurt that way lift. _He _was in control now. No longer the frightened boy who couldn't protect his mother.

He wiped his hands on his jumper, though it too was covered in blood. At least it was dark. Nobody would see... hopefully. Hiccup used his hat to wipe his face, shoved it in his pocket and looked around. There was nobody...

Hiccup found himself back at home without really thinking about it, hoping he hadn't left a trail of bloody footprints right to his door. He dropped his bloody clothes in front of the washing machine, standing there in front of it in his boxers looking at the dried blood on his skin.

"Hiccup?"

His mothers sleepy voice reached Hiccup, possibly having heard him come in at such a late hour. Hiccup realised too late what she was about to walk in on, and his warning came too late.

"Don't come in-"

"Hiccup! My gods, what happened to you?"

He looked down at his messy front, shrugging.

"S'not mine."

After several minutes tense silence, Valka lowered her hands from her face.

"Did anybody see you?"

"What?"

"Were you seen? Like... that?"

"Oh. Uh. I don't think so... the woman saw me I guess-"

"What woman?"

Hiccup did his best to explain to his mother what had happened, though he couldn't quite explain all the things he'd felt, or what made him go out in the first place.

"Oh Hiccup. What if she reports you?"

If they were normal, Hiccup thought maybe she'd be more concerned he'd _killed _somebody. But no. She was worried about _him._

"It was dark. I was wearing a hat. She ran away pretty fast... I don't know. She might, I guess. What was I meant to do? Let him hurt her?"

Ignoring the blood on him still, Valka hugged him, shaking her head.

"If anybody asks, you were here with me. Now go get cleaned up."

Hiccup did so, returning to find his mother soaking his bloody clothes in a bucket. They'd gotten pretty good at removing their own blood from clothes with so much practice, and a cold pre-soak was a good start.

"Let me do that. Get back to bed mom."

"Oh no, I'm awake now."

He took over the soaking anyway, mixing in the detergent and watching the water turn a sickly rust-orange colour.

"Tea?"

Probably ought to be weird, he thought, as they acted like Hiccup hadn't just come home covered in someone elses blood. As they sat with their drinks, Hiccup winced as all the strain he'd put on his amputated limb began to catch up with him. He'd be slow on his feet the next day. Or that same day, he supposed, glancing at the clock that flashed "4:12" at him.

"Hiccup."

He looked at his mother, who was surveying him oddly.

"What?"

"If you... do that again... don't take your phone with you."

"I won't. Do it again, I mean."

At the time, he meant it.

* * *

The silence was getting a little awkward now. Astrid sipped her drink, unsure why Hiccup wasn't looking at her all that much. She thought he'd seemed interested...

"Do you want to leave?"

He blinked, looking up at her for a minute before his eyes dropped again.

"Oh. Uh. No. Sorry, I'm just not very good at being around people."

"I can talk enough for both of us if you want, but only if you actually _want _to be out with me."

Hiccup nodded slowly, taking a mouthful of his drink.

"I should tell you something."

"Oh?"

He placed the take-out coffee cup down next to him, then reached down to the hem of his jeans and lifted it. Astrid saw what he was showing her right away, his shoe hiding his foot but not the... metal? pipe-thing that was acting in place of his lower leg.

"What happened?"

Hiccup rolled his jeans back down, swallowing thickly.

"I was in a car accident as a kid. Killed my dad."

Well, now Astrid regretted asking. He didn't look angry about her prying into what was probably a pretty terrible memory. After a tense minutes silence, Astrid tried to break it.

"I'm sorry. Your leg doesn't bother me though, if you were worried. I kinda have a thing for scars. Is that weird?"

Hiccup raised an eyebrow, observing her again. He had such an interesting stare, so focused but skittish, never lingering for long.

"Well, I have a few of those."

"From the accident?"

He shrugged.

"Yeah."

Something told Astrid he wasn't being truthful, but at the same time she had no proof he wasn't, nor any reason to doubt him. Hiccup drank more of his hot chocolate before he then turned to her.

"So, are you working on another book?"

He had to know Astrid saying she wanted to know if he liked the book was a front for wanting to ask him out, but apparently he _had _enjoyed the book, and was now initiating the conversation about more.

"Yeah. Same as the last one, about the same guy."

"Is he gonna get caught?"

Astrid winked.

"Spoilers!"

He laughed. It was the first proper laugh he'd let out, and Astrid rather liked it. A lot.

"Oh, let me guess. River Song fan?"

"How can you _not _be?"

"Oh I am, but I figured thats where you got that answer from."

"You would be correct. Can I geek out to you about my book or will that freak you out?"

Hiccup smiled. It was lopsided and toothy, but it lit up his whole face and Astrid cursed herself as she felt butterflies in her stomach.

"Go ahead."

Anyone passing by might be very, _very _concerned by how excitedly Astrid went on about a couple of different murders plotted out for the book. Hiccup listened patiently, staying quiet but Astrid actually felt like he was listening the whole time. As she detailed another death scene, he interrupted rather suddenly.

"Sorry, but that wouldn't work."

"What wouldn't?"

"The back of the head thing. It's harder to knock someone out than you think. You have to hit them hard enough for their brain to kind of... bounce, and that is kinda tough. If you didn't hit him hard enough, you would have a pissed off guy trying to kill _you._"

Astrid saw him stop speaking quite suddenly, sitting back after leaning forward to get quite animated.

"Why Hiccup, you know an awful lot about this."

He shrugged, suddenly quiet.

"I uh, don't get out much. Crime documentaries. And I know someone training in forensics."

"Any other advice then, mister expert?"

His hands twitched.

"Can I show you?"

"Are you gonna knock me out?"

He shook his head.

"No. I don't think I could hit you hard enough anyway."

Astrid turned, glad he couldn't see her face as she felt his fingers, the tips roughened by whatever he did with his time. She hadn't asked. His touch was gentle on her scalp, but her skin still tingled.

"Here" he touched the dome of the back of her head "is hard for someone to _hit _right, but if you fell back and landed on it you'd be in a fair bit of pain, possibly unconscious. But _here" _he brushed fingers over the base of her skull, where it met her neck "is a more dangerous place to be hit. Anything from black outs to paralysis to death."

Biting her lip, Astrid cursed the way his touch gave her goosebumps. She barely knew him. Surely he wasn't allowed to turn her on that much? In _public_? Her hands bunched into fists on her lap, eyes falling closed as Hiccup brushed fingers over her temples next.

"This is a good spot. Thin bone, important blood vessels. It's one of those places a knife could go through your skull without too much work."

Astrid _definitely _had a problem, because the way he was talking should not be affecting Astrid like a lover whispering filth in her ear. His hands retracted, left Astrid fighting to control her breathing and feeling distinctly disappointed that he was no longer touching her. Maybe she'd been ignoring sex in favour of writing for too long...

When she turned to face him again, Hiccup wasn't looking nearly as affected, but there was a faint flush under the freckles on his cheeks that Astrid hoped meant he felt _something. _Trying to ignore the flutters in her belly, Astrid drank her now-cold coffee with a wince. One day her books wouldn't cost her hot coffee. Today was not that day.

"Well, thanks for that. If I'd known you would be so full of information, I'd have brought my notepad."

He chuckled shortly.

"If you ever have a question, you can send it to me. If I don't know, I'll ask my friend."

Hiccup toyed idly with something around his neck, looking something like a ring on a chain but he tucked it under his jumper before she got a good view. His phone buzzed in his pocket, face tightening in focus as he looked at his text.

"I'm sorry, I have to go. My mom has an appointment later, and she can't drive."

For some reason, the fact he said it with no trace of resentment, as though caring for his mother was not the chore some people made it out to be... it made Astrid like him even more.

"It's fine, you said you couldn't stay out too late anyway."

Hiccup nodded, offered her a small smile.

"Well, I had fun. If thats the right thing to say."

"I had fun too" Astrid replied, standing up when he did "and thanks for the writing help. I hope you don't get annoyed when I send you texts for stuff I can't find on google."

He let out another small laugh and Astrid decided it wasn't _fair _how pretty he looked when he did so.

"I won't. Thanks for agreeing to something so low maintenance, by the way."

"Hey, it's about the company not the location."

Nodding, Hiccup patted his pockets down to check he had everything, nodding again to himself before turning to Astrid.

"So... I'll see you around then?"

Astrid nodded in turn, then decided _to Hel with it _and stretched up on her tip toes, pressing a kiss to his cheek. Hiccup blinked, cheeks flushing. It was adorable.

"Right. Uh. Ok. Bye then!"

Something about how he was simultaenously able to get her hot and also become flustered by something like a kiss on the cheek only endeared him to her more. Astrid saw him limp slightly as he headed toward a bus stop nearby, and spared a second to notice he had a cute butt... or maybe more than a second. Finally dragging her eyes off of him, Astrid looked at her watch and decided she had time to grab a pastry on her way to the gym. Then it was back home to write more... that might give her an excuse to text Hiccup more. Would that make her look desperate? Probably.

She was going to do it anyway, of course. Shouldering her bag, Astrid headed off toward the treat first, then to the gym. Granted, she liked staying in shape, but mostly Astrid enjoyed the way exercise made her feel. Running was a good way to deal with writers block, and weight lifting got her blood going, was a great way for her to burn off any stress. She got sweaty, showered, went home and flopped in front of her keyboard again.

"I _will_ finish this chapter tonight."

Astrid decided. She made a coffee, wholly expecting to drink it cold in an hour... maybe she should switch to iced coffee. Then she perched down, and three paragraphs in she found an excuse- no, a _reason _to text Hiccup, asking if he had any insight on how difficult blood was to get out of certain fabrics. Her murderer was wearing a nice wool suit he didn't want to throw out.

_"Not sure, but I'll ask and get back to you."_

It was only a little disappointing, Astrid told herself, that she had to wait a while before Hiccup answered, though she was still awake at two that morning when he _did _get back to her, apologising for the late hour and blaming it on his friend having a long shift.

_"If it's dried, it's harder, but it's doable apparently..."_

Astrid managed to write down everything he told her, but she was exhausted by then and had to bid him goodnight. She got up a little late, rushing for the bus to work and barely making the one at the right time. As she scooped up the free paper available and squeezed into a seat, Astrid sighed and glanced over the front page. The main story was politics, and it was too early for politics. The little taster of the article that continued on the next page caught her eye though.

_Night Fury strikes again!_

-HTTYD-

**Astrid, Astrid, Astrid... she really likes serial killers too much, huh? *laughs in author***


	3. Chapter 3

**I feel its worth noting after a conversation I had about this - I am not trying to make serial killers sympathetic. I'm just playing with a dynamic, and Hiccup has a back story like pretty much every serial killer there is. **

**Don't love how this chapter came out in parts, but I'm hoping it does enough with backstory that more present/future stuff makes sense? Idk.**

**Current upload schedule is when I have a four-chapter buffer. That way if I can't work on Serialcup for a while, I have a months worth of weekly updates. I just finished Ch7, so here's Ch3. **

-HTTYD-

Hiccup wiped his face on his sleeve, repressing the urge to spit the blood out of his mouth. Even with a helmet, it managed to get everywhere. But spit contained DNA, and Hiccup wasn't that stupid. Glancing around one last time, he dropped to one knee, ignoring the ache in his leg as he pulled out the little pocket blowtorch - artists got all the cool stuff, he laughed to himself. The body on the ground hadn't moved for a while, but Hiccups compulsion to brand them was an excellent way to be certain.

He put the knife back in its padded carry pouch, tucked it into the compartment of his leg. He only wore the 'full leg' shaped one when he was hunting, and his less 'realistic' cup-and-pylon style leg the rest of the time. It wasn't like Hiccup ever wore shorts outside his home, so nobody saw what kind of prosthetic he had on.

The ring was far too big for his slender hands, but it meant he could slip the band over a gloved finger with ease. He heated the ring until it glowed the ring colour, scalding to the touch. Probably. Hiccup had invested a chunk of money into high quality gloves that would protect his hands from heat and blood and sharp blades, while still affording him the flexibility to wield a weapon. Sometimes one of opportunity, but he always carried a knife. _The _knife. The knife he'd pulled out of his dead stepfather. His mother told him to throw it out. Hiccup couldn't. He'd cleaned it, bleached just like everything they couldn't bury or burn.

Hiccup found a patch of skin not covered in blood or bruises or swelling, pressed the glowing ring to it. He let out a breath as skin crackled and hissed, the weight of childhood fear leaving him for just a moment. He'd been planning to wait a _little_ longer, even though the urge was back. But then Astrid asked about bloodstains and wool... it set him off. Turned urge to _need._ So Hiccup scoured his little prey list, adding up the routines he'd tracked until he found one who would be out at night.

Sometimes he found them by chance, prowling 'bad' areas to keep his pattern unpredictable. Other times he dug through police records for domestic abusers, rapists... those who got away, intimidating victims out of testifying. Hiccup had been too afraid once. If he was going to answer the urge to take lives, he'd figured he might as well save others from fear.

Hiccup even trawled the Darknet sometimes - it was a good place to find out who knew what. He was talked about there, but none of the 'information' he saw exchanged about him was really identifying. Hacking was a hobby, a byproduct of hours holed up with a computer while Hiccup was recovering from countless injuries inflicted by Alvin, the tech a gift from his grandmother - Alvin didn't take it because he didn't want close attention paid. He smashed up just about everything _else _Hiccup owned, but he was trying to keep Stoick's mother pacified so she wouldn't get suspicious. She had Stoick's life insurance money, after all, set up in a trust for Hiccup to get when he turned eighteen. It wasn't much, but it was enough for his stepfather to keep Hiccup alive.

A decision he'd likely regret. If he was still alive to do so.

Watching the brand settle in the moonlight, Hiccup made sure he hadn't left anything. Zipped his jacket up. Then he went home. Pulled off the thick wool jumper he'd worn for the occasion, surveying it with a knowing eye. Wool wasn't his favourite, but Astrid had asked after all.

Valka found him in the garden, post-shower, dressed in pyjamas and watching his jumper soak in cold water. Hot water made stains set.

"Again son? I thought you were cutting down."

"It was for research. And itchy fingers. I left my phone at home, don't worry."

After his first - Alvin - Valka helped him clean up and hide the body. Maternal protection hadn't ended there. She was the only one he could talk to about it, and she made sure Hiccup did everything he could not to get caught. Up to and including giving Hiccup an alibi once - someone caught a glimpse, just one, of a skinny guy in a beanie hat bent over the body in an alleyway. And while Hiccup hadn't been a suspect, he _had _been asked in for a line-up by pure chance - he was just out picking up Valka's prescriptions. And when the stranger IDed him, his mother gave a heartfelt assurance that Hiccup had been with her the whole night, bringing her water when new medication had made her sick.

It worked.

He started wearing a helmet after that. A custom job, one he made himself. No trail that way.

"Research?"

"I'd never worn wool before. Curious about stain removal."

The knife and the ring both sat in a strong cleaning solution, removing blood and skin and DNA. His mother shook her head, but got herself a cup of tea and came to sit outside with him. Hiccup got her a fleece throw when he saw her shiver. Neither of them commonly slept through the night, plagued by pain and nightmares and residual insomnia from a time where sleep was just a more vulnerable moment.

"Who was it tonight?"

"Guy who beat his boyfriend black and blue, but the cops didn't take it seriously because they're gay."

If he knew which one made that call, Hiccup would have added them to his list too. Satisfied the stain was as treated as it would get in the bucket, Hiccup dumped it in the washing machine and set the cycle, tossed a little bleach in the bucket to help stop the blood from staining and rinsed it out before he went back to the garden, stretching out on his lounger and rubbing his knee with a groan.

"Bad?"

"Not really. More irritated I've been on it a while. Once we finish these we should go to bed."

Once he'd seen his mother back to her room, Hiccup pulled the jumper out of the machine. He saw no stains, so the usual methods he used seemed to have worked pretty well. He tapped out the reply to Astrid as he headed to his room, dropping into his bed with a sigh of relief once his prosthetic was off.

Astrid was still awake, though soon after he relayed the information she begged off to sleep. Hiccup figured he should try too, his mind never calmer than after he'd sated the need for blood. His mother disapproved of Hiccup dating, not because she didn't want him to meet somebody, but because it was somebody who could find him out. She knew she couldn't stop Hiccup killing short of turning him in, and her ultimate goal was keeping Hiccup out of prison. Which Hiccup _obviously _appreciated.

But when Astrid texted him again, he couldn't help texting back.

* * *

Hiccup was... complicated, Astrid realised quite quickly. He wasn't chatty, but equally he wasn't disinterested in what she had to say. She felt like he was listening the whole time, and while he didn't make eye contact much he still focused on her face. Random words would bring a cloud down in his eyes, dark with thought before he shook it off. Over text, he was fine, but by Hiccup's own admission the majority of real life conversation he had was with the mother he cared for.

He was weird about physical contact too - not sex. They were nowhere _near_ that yet, especially not with how much work it was already taking to draw him out of his shell. But if Astrid initiated a hug, he'd tense before he responded. He still flushed when she kissed his cheek, let alone the few times they shared on-the-mouth kisses. Astrid had strong suspicions he was a virgin, but didn't feel it was the time to ask yet. She hadn't forgotten though, his hands in the park brushing spots on her head as he described the danger of impacts here and there.

"So, how is your new book coming along? Have the police dragged you in yet?"

"Not yet, but I'm sure when it's published they'll try and convince me to confess to being the Night Fury. Did you see the latest one?"

Hiccup returned a hesitant nod.

"In the paper, yeah. The police have nothing, again, I gather."

"Yep. And since the killer in my books marks his victims too, I'll probably get questioned. It's not my fault the Night Fury ripped me off!"

Hiccup cocked his head, sipping from the mug in his hand.

"Did you start writing before they started killing?"

Astrid opened her mouth to answer, then closed it again to consider dates.

"Nobody is sure _when, _there's a couple of kills that were close but not identical, but then serials can escalate or adapt their MO sometimes and I am a little too into serial killers, sorry."

He shook his head, gestured.

"Go on, it's fine."

"Really?"

Hiccup bobbed his head, sipping again.

"The first words I heard from you were about somebody being hit in the head with a pipe. I read your book before I agreed to go on a date with you. I know what you're 'in to', as it were. So, as you were."

Astrid spared a moment to marvel at how he was already the most understanding guy she had ever encountered when it came to her writing, especially given the content, and then she was back on the topic of the obsession her mother wished she'd lose.

"Well, there was this one where the victim was basically pulverised, and burned with cigarettes rather than branded, but if that was the Night Fury's first, then maybe they didn't have the thing they use to brand the victims. That was one of the few with any witnesses too."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. This woman said a guy saved her from being raped, and she refused to even describe him to the cops. They threatened to charge her with assisting an offender, but since it wasn't premeditated and she was the victim, they had no real case. So maybe there's somebody out there who knows what the Night Fury looks like."

Hiccup frowned.

"Fan of theirs, are you?"

"I don't know about _fan, _but when you write murder books and there's an active serial killer basically on your doorstep who has an unpredictable pattern but distinctive signature... wow, I am going to scare you off if I don't shut up."

She really needed to stop spouting about serial killers. Hiccup was going to run away, and he looked so cosy perched on her sofa with a mug in his hand and no shoes on. He had socks on, so the foot of his prosthetic leg was hidden but Astrid knew it was there - he'd shown her. She liked that he'd felt he could.

"Seriously, it's fine. Aren't you scared though?"

"Of the Night Fury?"

"Yeah."

"Nope. I mean, I guess serial killers aren't considered reasonable people, but as far as I know the Night Fury has a type and I don't fit it. What about you?"

He blinked, putting his mug down now it was empty and tapping fingers against his thigh.

"I don't think I know as much about the Night Fury as you, but I don't _think _I'm the type. I don't go out at night anyway. I don't even go out much in the day."

Astrid grinned.

"Then I'm honoured you made the effort for me."

Hiccup smiled.

"I enjoy your company. Which is a rare thing in itself. Even when you want to talk serial killers."

"I can talk about something else."

"Sure you could, but like I said, I knew what I was in for. And I am genuinely curious about your book."

There he went again, being all sweet and sincere in his quiet, introverted way. Astrid _really _liked him. Would-jump-if-he-showed-interest liked him. But Hiccup was obviously a slow mover, and Astrid wasn't going to push it. She was capable of patience. It wasn't like he was a Danish pastry...

"Well, if you're sure... I'm kinda stuck on a couple of scenes. Mind soundboarding like in the park?"

She suppressed a pleasant shiver at the thought of his hands, his voice... Hiccup nodded, smiled.

"Sure."

Astrid got them fresh drinks, sat cross legged at the other end of the sofa to him, one of her notebooks in hand. Hiccup pulled his legs up, put a cushion under the knee of his shorter leg, then nodded at her to go.

"How oblivious do you think someone can be about it?"

"What do you mean? About a serial killer?"

"Yeah. Is it possible to like, date someone who's out there doing it and not know?"

Hiccup hummed, tracing a finger around the rim of his cup and staring off to the left. Astrid tried not to get distracted by his hands. He had such _big, _dextrous hands...

"Well, there's countless cases of serial murderers and rapists who were married with kids, jobs, even pets. As far as I know, pets tend to be early victims of killers. I guess some could have been lying about not knowng, but... I don't know, I think it's possible. It would depend on how they compartmentalised."

"Is that possible? To seperate it that much?"

He'd switched to drumming his fingers against the side of his mug.

"It depends what sets them off, what kind of killer they are. Like, someone who targets sex workers probably doesn't treat their wife spectacularly, but he also has a very specific target for his anger. If somebody is killing... their mother over and over, but their mother is dead, then they're unlikely to show triggers in front of someone around their own age."

Astrid listened avidly, jotting in her notepad a little before flipping back to a scene she was working on.

"Alright, so dating is a possibility. Oh, hey, question. If you were gonna kill someone, whats the least energy-intensive way you can think of that isn't poison?"

"Ah, the lazy killer. Hmm. Push them off a cliff or tall building? Quick, simple. What about you?"

Humming, Astrid rapped her pencil against her notepad.

"Inject them with air. No mucking about, just a nice straight embolism."

Hiccup actually laughed, putting his cup aside to applaud her sarcastically.

"Oh that's good! Why didn't I think of that?"

"Well clearly, only one of us has the potential to become a murderer."

He didn't answer except to take a swallow of his drink. Astrid hoped she hadn't scared him off.

-HTTYD-

**Oh Astrid, your danger-boner is showing**

**Crofty666 - No. I think the prompt originated on tumblr, got screencapped and dotted around the internet, then ended up on the ATOV Discord server where I encountered it and it sort of grew into a plan for a story.**


	4. Chapter 4

**As I write this chapter now, I am quietly contemplating finishing the whole thing and uploading it on a regular basis. Of course, I planned to do that with Changed, and that totally worked out *cough*. **

**So we'll see. On with Serialcup!**

**(I lied. I wrote five chapters before I cracked and started uploading)**

-HTTYD-

Groaning into the hand over his face, Eret leant back in his chair and sighed deeply before rising to his feet to go and get more coffee. He'd not be sleeping that night. Not with the Night Fury still out there. The serial killers handiwork no longer fit on two noticeboards - there were three now, and the third was filling up far too quickly.

"Hey Eret, shouldn't you have left already?"

Teeny - a sarcastic nickname for the guy built like a tank, who barely squeezed those muscles into his uniform - stuck his head round, saw the papers everywhere and the rows of crime scene photographs along the corkboards. Two per victim, one of their brands and another of what was left of their faces. 'Fury' had been a name the killer worked hard for. Even the ones the Fury used their fists for had barely a bone unbroken in their faces.

"Does it look like I can leave?"

"Ah. This guy won't catch himself."

"We don't know its a guy."

Eret pointed out, and Teeny countered with

"What _woman_ could do this?"

"That line of thought cost cops before us, and that sort of blindness is why we don't catch female serial killers. Do I think its a guy? Probably, but none of the victims were sexually assaulted, apart from one guy kicked in the jewels presumably during a struggle, and I am open to the possibility of a woman. I mean, we've hauled that writer in three times now."

Teeny winced.

"Fair point. That girls got a mouth on her, and a mean right hook."

Hofferson had been questioned a few times, and also cost one police officer their job after breaking his nose. He'd offered to 'trade' a guarantee she'd not be called in again for sex, and Hofferson had socked him in the face then produced a recording of him doing it. Apparently she used their interrogations to inspire her writing. They'd _had _to sack the police officer, or Hofferson probably would have gone to the press about it. Bad publicity was something they couldn't afford, not when they were failing so spectacularly to find _anything _on the Night Fury.

"They have got to make a mistake somewhere. Nobody is _this _good at covering up."

The suspect folder was horrifyingly thin, both in numbers and information. Eret opened it again, as though it would show anything. A couple of them were pictures of ex partners of victims, but they all only connected to one person. The growing number of victims told that none of them were viable as the Night Fury. Eret didn't discount copycats, but the brand was so specific, the attacks so random.

"You think it could be a cop?"

"Maybe. But they've never used a gun, or even a taser to incapacitate. This" Eret pointed at the boards behind him "is anger. So unless we start looking at any cop with excessive violence complaints coming out their ears, it's not much of a suspect pool."

He pushed the photos aside one by one, discounted already. There was only one photo left in there.

"Who is this?"

Eret was fairly new to the precinct, having requested the transfer because he so hated cocky, free roaming murderers. He'd been following the case from afar before, but this picture of a guy who looked barely out of teens was new to him.

"Haddock? Oh, he's not meant to be in there. That one witness picked him out of a lineup, but he was a spot filler and has a sick mother as an alibi to boot."

"I thought we didn't trust mothers as alibis?"

Teeny laughed.

"Trust me. Look at his medical list. He was out picking up his mothers meds when he was asked to fill a spot, and she's got a chunk of medical problems herself and can't leave the house without him, so it was more than just a 'my son was visiting' convenient comment. That guys not our guy."

Glancing through the list, Eret nodded to himself - lost his dad as a kid, stepdad ran off, he was registered as medically disabled due to old injuries from a car crash. Including a prosthetic leg. Eret glanced up at the notes next to the first two victims - at first they'd thought the Night Fury had a limp, which would probably match this amputee. But the next victims didn't show any real struggle for mobility in the shoe prints, so the signs of a limp had been put down to things like "maybe he slipped in wet blood" or "he'd sprained his ankle" and so on.

"He doesn't even look old enough."

"Yeah, he was..." Teeny consulted some notes "seventeen, when that first one was killed. The one with cigarette burns, not a brand."

"Are we sure thats a Fury kill?"

"Same rage. And that was the only other one with a witness. Not that she'd help us, but she did say he saved her from a rapist. This guy has a type, and it all fits. Right down to absolutely zero evidence."

Someone came in - the room had been sectioned off for Night Fury stuff only for the moment, because there was _so much _of it - and dropped an evidence bag on the table. Eret picked it up, frowning.

"What is that?"

"Hoffersons new book. Someone's gotta read it to see if there's more details."

Desperate for _anything _to stimulate his mind at that point as Eret swallowed a bitter mouthful of cheap instant coffee, he reached for the book immediately, signing the chain of custody log before he opened the seal and pulled out the book. Coffee refilled, he scanned the back and opened the inside covers first. There was a picture of the author; he'd seen pictures of her before, and ignored the wayward notice that she was an attractive woman. There was a chance she was a serial killer. Or knew one, if she had more details of deaths.

He woke with a stiff neck, hours-old coffee and his face stuck to the book under his cheek. Eret sat up with a grunt, peeling the book off his face and rubbing his eyes. Someone had turned the lights off, but apparently left him to sleep. He stretched, stood and headed for the bathroom. After a brief trip out to pick up a breakfast his personal trainer would yell at him for, Eret went back to the Night Fury room and picked the book up again.

Like Teeny said, this killer wouldn't catch themselves.

* * *

Astrid was a patient woman. Mostly. And she didn't want to pressure Hiccup.

But a girl could worry.

"Hiccup."

"Yeah?"

Astrid drew her knees to her chest, hoping not to come across aggressive or harsh or judgemental. He was sweet, she didn't want to hurt him but the whole 'wait and see' had gone on a while now. Communication was good, right?

"Are you actually interested in me? I mean, in an attraction way?"

He frowned, and Astrid worried for his answer.

"Are you asking me why I haven't tried to have sex with you?"

She'd not expected such a blunt question, but at least they were at the problem quite quickly.

"Sort of. It's fine if you're just the type of guy who likes to wait. I just don't want to... waste either of our time if you aren't really into me."

Hiccup looked down at his hands, sighing deeply.

"I do like you. I'm just... it's complicated. I struggle with touch sometimes, and I guess I'm self conscious of being a scrawny stick insect covered in scars."

Astrid nodded - she understood the first, though the second was one she felt she ought to address.

"If you're uncomfortable with being touched, that's _fine. _But I think I've already said this. I _like _scars. Your metal leg doesn't bother me. And I don't think you're scrawny. Slim, sure, but so what? I don't need you to make me feel small and delicate by comparison."

He squirmed a little under Astrid's scrutiny, so she tried not to look so intently at him on what was _clearly _a touchy subject.

"Would you take your shirt off? I won't touch you if you don't want me to, but this way you can't say I don't know what you've got under there."

Hiccup's eyes widened, hands shaking. Astrid worried she'd asked a little too far, but then he heaved a deep sigh and nodded.

"You asked for this."

He stood, turned away from her and placed hands on the hem of his heavy jumper. Astrid sat up straighter, trying to keep her face neutral as he began to lift the fabric. Right away, she could see what he was worried about. When the jumper and t-shirt were tossed aside, Hiccup stood with his arms crossed in front of him, exposing the scars only on his back and _gods... _there was barely an inch of him that _wasn't _scarred. Jagged lines, thick stripes, small, circular burns and flat, stretched ones. He was shaking when he turned to face her, letting his hands fall to his sides.

More scars littered his chest, his sides, his stomach. Astrid knew he'd been in a car accident, and expected _some _scars from something that had been serious enough to cost him his father and his leg. But looking at his torso now, Astrid could see there was far more to it than one accident. There was a tattoo on one shoulder, but other than that his skin was mostly scars and a few freckles.

"Told you."

Astrid realised she'd lifted her hands to her mouth in shock, unaware until he was reaching for his jumper again to hide himself. Still stunned, Astrid finally snapped out of it when Hiccup made a comment that he was going to leave.

"Wait! I'm sorry. I was surprised. And I don't know what happened to you" Astrid stood up, moving in front of him so Hiccup stopped rather than walk into her "but it doesn't make me less attracted to you. At all."

Hiccup still wouldn't look at her, but he didn't back away or try to leave again.

"I won't ask what happened, although I hope one day you'll feel like you can tell me."

He was quiet for a minute, but then Hiccup reached a tentative hand out and placed it on her waist. Astrid dared to step closer, tipped her head up and smiled when Hiccup kissed her. Maybe they weren't wildly physically passionate, but Astrid knew that didn't matter. Hiccup was attentive, always listening no matter how much Astrid went on about her books. He talked her down when she was wound up with stress, answered ridiculous texts at three in the morning even though he probably ought to be sleeping. He made her dinner and watched trashy TV with her. Even drew pictures to help Astrid visualise when they were talking murder mysteries.

If it took another month or another year to get him in bed? She'd live. And get new batteries for her vibrator, probably.

Hiccup pulled away from her, cheeks flushed and breath a little heavier.

"I'm... I mean, I haven't... before."

"Hiccup, are you trying to tell me you're a virgin?"

He nodded, eyes downcast. Astrid reached up, touching his cheek gently.

"That's ok. I can wait til you're ready. And I'm a girl who will _happily_ give you directions if you're not sure what to do."

Hiccup slid his other arm around her, pulled Astrid to him in one of those rare Hiccup-initiated hugs. She tried not to squeeze him too tight.

"What did I do to deserve you?"

He said it so quietly she wasn't sure it was meant for her to hear it, but Astrid drew back a little and offered him a smile.

"You say that like you've done something terribly bad before."

His face clouded for a minute, looking away and Astrid saw him swallow thickly.

"Guess we file that under things you might tell me one day?"

He nodded tightly, arms falling from her sides and Astrid resisted the urge to pull them back, liking how it felt when he held her. She couldn't imagine he'd done something truly terrible in the past, but Astrid also knew she could not be certain he'd _never _done something 'bad', and equally there was a good chance that he'd done nothing bad but had been convinced otherwise by whoever had covered his body in those marks.

"Hey. Fancy some pastry?"

Hiccup raised an eyebrow; he was not enamoured with Astrid's efforts in the kitchen, and she couldn't blame him. Cooking wasn't her strong suit.

"Did you make them?"

"Rude! But no. There's a place I spend far too much money in that makes great pastries down the road. Up for it?"

"Uh. Sure. Mind if I use the bathroom first?"

Astrid stepped back, smiling as Hiccup headed off toward the toilet door, leaving her to think for a minute. _Someone _had obviously hurt him. A lot. She recognised cigarette burns, marks of a belt-whipping. It would explain a lot anyway - his hesitance with touch, how quiet he was, and since he was so terrified to take off his shirt and reveal it, probably his virginity too. It had taken Astrid a few months now to even get the _conversation_ that far - anyone less patient and not necessarily understanding might not have hung around that long. And that was _if_ they were as forward as Astrid. She basically demanded his phone number and asked him out.

Still, for lack of experience, Hiccup was a pretty good boyfriend so far. And she liked how sweet he was, always taking care of his... oh. Did his _mother _do that to him? Or... his injuries were all old, some years older than others. His stepfather had vanished when he was fifteen, and his mother had a list of medical maladies. _Oh. _Astrid tried to stop thinking too hard on it - he'd tell her when he was ready.

"So... pastry?"

Hiccup exited the bathroom, wiping a little missed water off washed hands.

"Pastry it is."

After a little hesitation, Hiccup reached down and held her hand. Astrid grinned when he turned nervous eyes to her, squeezing gently in encouragement. He smiled in return as they walked, Astrid eventually tugging him into the bakery. The girl who worked behind the counter spotted Astrid quickly, waved with a smile.

"Astrid! The usu- oh. Who's _this?_"

"Hey Heather. This is Hiccup. Hiccup, meet my sugar dealer, Heather."

Heather looked him up and down before turning back to Astrid and giving a thumbs up.

"I like to think of myself as ensuring you actually eat something every day."

They chatted for a minute while Hiccup got the chance to peruse the options, Heather mouthing "_nice!"_ at her in reference to Hiccup. It was the first time Astrid had ever had a date to the bakery after all. When Heather looked back over at him, he tapped the glass over one of the options.

"Are there nuts in this?"

"No, but are you allergic?"

Hiccup shook his head.

"No. I just don't like the taste of most, and I prefer peanuts in a smooth butter."

"That's alright then" Hiccup meandered off to look at the drinks menu, and Heather looked back to Astrid "wow, is he always so...?"

She trailed off, but Astrid knew what she meant.

"He's quiet sometimes, but I like him."

"That's good. Your usual, yeah?"

"Always. Well, not always. But until the gingerbread stuff comes back for December."

After Hiccup ordered, Heather shooed them off to sit and said she'd bring them over. Hiccup checked his phone, but Astrid knew he was only checking if his mother had called or texted him, otherwise it tended to stay in his pocket.

"Hey, is this the guy that overheard you on the bus and you thought was following you?"

"Wow Heather, doesn't make me sound weird at all! But yes, this is him."

Heather winked, placing the tray down and escaping before Astrid threw a spoon at her. Hiccup surveyed his drink, stirring with the overly long latte spoon to disperse some of the foamy top.

"So this is where you fuel the writing?"

"Yep. And then pay for it in the gym. Actually, thats a lie. Working out is a great stress relief, its just a happy side effect nobody can tell I'm a secret sugar addict. Except maybe my dentist, but she's evil incarnate anyway."

Chewing on a mouthful of something that smelled like cinnamon, with chocolate chips scattered through it, Hiccup gave her a bemused look.

"What did your dentist ever do to you?"

"Doesn't everyone hate their dentist?"

He shrugged.

"I don't. I've had some dental work over the years" his expression said it was related to the network of injuries over his body, and he sucked in a breath before moving on "and I disliked all the times I couldn't have solid food more than anything. He was gentle, did good work. And I'm not afraid of needles, which I guess helps?"

"Could be. Mostly mine gives me cleanings and tells me to drink less coffee. Has she never met a writer before? Caffeine is part of our DNA."

Heather left them in peace to eat and drink, waved goodbye when Hiccup took their tray back up to the counter. After they left, Hiccup checked the time.

"Would you mind if I headed home now?"

"Nope. I know you gotta get back to your mom. Can I see you again soon?"

Hiccup nodded, smiling.

"I would like that. Thanks for the pastry date."

Astrid waited, hoping, and was rewarded by Hiccup repeating his earlier motion of one hand on her waist before he leant in and kissed her. She could taste the cinnamon on his lips, stomach fluttering.

"Are you writing tonight?"

"Maybe just some outlines. I only just got the last one out! Why do you ask anyway?"

Hiccup chuckled, holding up his phone.

"So I know to look out for the late night questions about blood and broken bones."

"Well when you put it that way, I sound really weird."

Still smiling, Hiccup shrugged.

"I like weird. I will see you soon milady."

Astrid couldn't keep the goofy smile off her face as Hiccup headed off to his car, turning to wave when he reached the disabled bay of the car park over the road. How was anyone the right mix of adorable and knowledgeable about murder? It was a strange combination, and she was so glad she'd found him.

-HTTYD-

**Serial Killer AU and fluff... I'm sure thats a trope somewhere...**

**Silvoide - when you say 'already started kissing', they had been seeing each other for a few weeks by then and were _only _kissing. If anything, thats moving slow for me when most of my work is "how soon do they bang? very soon" **

**IcyForest - air embolisms can _definitely _kill you. They usually happen as a side effect of needles in blood vessels.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hiccup, Hiccup, Hiccup... he's a very bad boy.**

-HTTYD-

Hiccup leant back in his chair, rubbing his knee with a sigh as he looked up and around the basement. He'd set up down there as a rebellion, a reclamation of a space that had once meant fear, pain and hearing the sounds of his mother being beaten when he could do nothing to help. He even took his leg off down there sometimes, navigating with his wheelchair.

He always had the lights on though. Had fitted several of them, and had a bunch of candles and a powerful torch just in case. Basement _and _dark meant flashbacks, twinging scars and nightmares in bed.

Rolling himself back from the desk, Hiccup wheeled over to the other side to get a cold drink. He didn't keep them on the desk anymore, after several instances where occasional struggles with his hands ended in drinks dumped over art works. His fingers didn't _look _too bad, a testament to Hiccup's ability to splint them when Alvin had stomped his hand until he heard the cracking. But they ached fiercely some days, and Hiccup was forever shaking out stiffness from holding pencils and paintbrushes. He'd made himself a knock-proof holder for paint, but stiff hands dropped drinks a lot. So it was just safer to keep them on their own little side.

It also meant Hiccup could keep a mini fridge down there. Which was nice.

Rolling back to his desk, Hiccup flexed his fingers and went back to drawing. Art was the only place he expressed what he did. Countless sketches and paintings of each victim, some done the night he claimed their lives, others weeks later. It depended whether he'd picked them early, or found them by chance.

He added a bloodstained jumper to the picture, symbolic of the night and Astrid's questions. Hiccup didn't put himself in the pictures, except sometimes a shadow from a streetlight. The images were his story, he was narrating rather than starring. Red ink stuck to his fingers, shiny like fresh blood on him and the page as he finished the splatters of the jumper. Moonlight glimmered on a puddle stained with red too; stabbings were so messy but there was something so satisfying about the knife.

The pain began to get worse, and Hiccup figured he was about done anyway so could leave it to dry. Putting his leg back on before his fingers seized up again, Hiccup grabbed his half-finished drink, then climbed the stairs and used the upstairs switch to turn the lights off, plunging his little killer hideaway back into darkness. It wasn't too late, so he wasn't surprised to find Valka in the kitchen getting herself something to eat. Her eyes landed on his hands, frowning.

"It's ink, honest! I was drawing."

He washed his hands in the sink, then checked the fridge to make a list for his shopping trip the next day.

"When are you seeing Astrid again?"

There was a strange note in her voice; something like disapproval, but he also knew his mother wanted him to be happy. Hiccup reckoned part of her hoped Hiccup would give up the killing for Astrid.

"In a couple of days. She's working a lot and just started on her next book, so yeah, she's busy."

He hadn't brought Astrid home yet. It felt like the sort of thing one did in a long term relationship, and there was no way it could be that. Hiccup hadn't even had sex with her yet, although that was doubly weird to think about. He had no experience, with girlfriends or sex. He'd always had too much to hide, but Astrid saw through his scars and his metal leg and somehow still found him physically appealing.

"Are we out of anything?"

"I don't think so. If you plan on baking anything else, you may want to get more flour and sugar."

Hiccup nodded, scribbling it on the list and grabbing a yoghurt while he was in the fridge. He had to eat a little clumsily, his left hand sore from drawing so he relied on the right to hold the spoon. It was something he knew he had to be wary of anyone noticing; some could see the handed-ness of an attacker in the wounds left, and being left handed wasn't the most common thing. Hiccup had occasionally made an effort to use his right, and sometimes he _had _to - it was his left hand Alvin broke the fingers of most, so on occasion Hiccup relied on his right to drive in a knife or bring down a rock.

"How are you feeling? Has that op actually done anything?"

"It has. It hurts less to stand up straight, which is nice."

The damage was done; Valka would likely never be able to live without some form of aid, she'd probably be on pain relief forever. But there were steps to make her a little more comfortable from day to day, and she had the option for surgery to effectively re-break her leg and heal it properly, but it came with no guarantees of working and Hiccup knew she hated hospitals, surgery, encountering anyone _new _who would see her scars. He thought she should do it, but Hiccup wouldn't try and push the issue; after all the years it wasn't up to her, he supported her choices toward her own body.

"_Which is more realistic? Sledgehammer or cricket bat?"_

It was a truly surreal aspect of their relationship; Astrid asked questions about murder Hiccup could answer himself, though he lied and said he checked with a forensics friend sometimes to stop her thinking too hard about how he knew it.

**"Depends how many times you use it. Sledgehammers wear you out a lot faster. I don't know about cricket bats, but a rounders bat would do a lot of damage."**

He'd only used a sledgehammer once, and that was because it was _there. _It had been near a DIY store when Hiccup found the man he was after, and so he thought he'd find out. By the time he'd finished, he could barely lift his arms. Rounders bats were a far easier swing, and their shape allowed a little more flexibility in aiming at a moving target. Newspapers had described him as a 'curiousity killer', because Hiccup had tried out several weapons and methods so far.

_"So what you're saying is a sledgehammer is a good workout?"_

**"You could see it that way, but it's also something you can quite easily pull a muscle on. And since you live in a small place, swinging poses a real risk to your walls."**

_"Spoilsport. Thanks though."_

Chuckling at the weird message, Hiccup plugged his phone in to charge and got into bed. Sat up with his laptop on its tray, he went through his list. There were quite a few on it, but none had plans to be out at night anytime soon it seemed. Disappointed, Hiccup flicked through a few more websites before he put the laptop away and laid down to sleep, almost drifted off when Astrid texted him again about hydrogen peroxide and bloodstains.

Lots of things she asked could probably be found on google, but he knew the answers and Astrid liked texting him. It worked out, really. Her last book had done quite well, possibly thanks to her being taken in for questioning about the Night Fury over it _again. _It was her fourth time, and they knew it wasn't her but couldn't seem to stop trying. Still, the association of her to the case made her murder books all the more fascinating to those intrigued by the darker side of life. Not enough for her to quit her day job, but enough that her publisher was already salivating about the next one.

The irony was not lost on Hiccup that they'd been connected before they ever met; her murder mysteries had Astrid more under the eye of police than Hiccup, the actual murderer they were after who had even been picked out of a line up. And Astrid was suspected of _his _murders. He tried not to give her too-recent details, lest her books come up as 'evidence' against her again. Hiccup liked Astrid, he didn't want her in trouble. Especially not for his thing.

Of course, realistically, Hiccup knew he shouldn't be dating her at all.

That wasn't stopping him.

Her patience was... something else, really. Hiccup wasn't sure anybody would have waited months for him to even take his shirt off, let alone do more than share shy, brief kisses out of fear she'd realise how utterly clueless he was.

But Astrid was something unique, and he let her draw him in again.

Her mouth was soft and sweet on his, fingers gentle at his waist. She'd already seen his scarred torso, so it wasn't as though there was a shock value waiting anymore, but Hiccup wasn't sure he could handle her questions. Astrid noticed his tension, pulling away from his lips.

"I won't ask. You can tell me when you're ready. Honestly I just want to touch you, as much as you're alright with."

A few awkward shifts later, Hiccup wriggled out of his jumper and t-shirt. Astrid didn't stare, leaning back in to kiss him as those same gentle hands slowly began to map his chest. It felt very strange; Hiccup couldn't think of when _anyone _had last done that. It might have even been his mother bathing him as a boy, or cleaning blood from his skin to patch him up after a bad night. Some scars were numb, others ticklish. One of his hands made its way to her hair, enamoured with the way the strands felt silk-soft under his fingers. The fingers of his other hand curled around the cushion of the sofa under him, fighting the urge to cover himself.

"Can I ask about this?"

His heart spasmed in panic - she'd said she _wouldn't ask... _then he realised Astrid's fingers were brushing over his tattoo, not a scar.

"Oh. Uh. Yeah. My mom has one too. It's a dove and a crow, for life and death."

The birds were intertwined, symbolic of the man they lost - his father, her husband - and the man they had survived, Alvin. They'd gotten the tattoos in the next town over, so nobody nearby knew their scars. The struggles they'd had with Alvin were utterly unknown to most.

Astrid offered him a soft smile, let the topic drop as she leant back in to resume kissing him. He'd always thought of kissing as a bit weird, but kissing _Astrid_ was quite enjoyable. It made him feel warm, tingles in his belly growing the longer her mouth moved with his. He couldn't have been very good, but Astrid hadn't said anything. He had no frame of reference, but Astrid was _amazing _as far as he was concerned.

She stroked his ravaged skin slowly, learning the bumps and rough spots and dips of scarring. Hiccup kept expecting her to recoil in disgust, but Astrid showed zero sign of going anywhere. He squirmed as she found a spot on his side that was oddly sensitive, realising for the first time her touch and kisses and proximity had had quite the effect. His cock twitched when Astrid licked at his lips, playful smile on her mouth as he let out a needy little noise.

"Can I?"

Astrid asked, hand stilling at his lower abdomen without overstepping his boundaries. He nodded, scared anew as Astrid worked his belt open first, eyes on his face as she undid his button before tugging down his fly. Thankfully, she didn't try to take his jeans _off. _That would have been too much for Hiccup just then. She stroked him gently through his boxers, watching him to make sure he didn't freak out.

"Alright?"

Hiccup nodded, gasping when her hand slipped beneath the waistband so he could feel her warm palm against his cock, panting and twitching as her hand moved a little quicker, squeezed a little tighter. Astrid's intense blue eyes focused entirely on him, watching every desperate expression that crossed his face as those nimble fingers stroked and teased, rubbing until Hiccup's back arched and his hips jerked up into her hand as he came with a low whine.

Drawing in a few deep breaths, Hiccup watched as Astrid wiped her hand off on something nearby, tossing it in the direction he knew her washing basket lingered before she resumed watching him again.

"So, you liked that?"

"Uh-huh."

Hiccup's head bobbed in agreement, and before he could worry about it Astrid was fixing his boxers and fastening his bottoms, reducing the sense of vulnerability he felt. After a minute or two in silence, she moved a bit.

"Is it alright if I cuddle you? Or do you want your clothes back?"

He did want his jumper back, but Hiccup was also feeling soft and hazy with the pleasure hormones that still flowed through him. And Astrid had shown she wasn't averse to touching him despite the scars. So he gave assent, felt Astrid move around before she was lying down next to him, head on his shoulder and hand resting on his chest. They stayed there in relative silence, the high wearing off and leaving Hiccup with awareness and reason.

_This _couldn't last. There was no way. Astrid would find out eventually, or he'd break it off to stop her. He shouldn't have let her get so close as it was, but he couldn't seem to help but trust her.

Ironically, that made Astrid feel oh so very dangerous to him. Rules kept him safe and out of prison, but Astrid seemed to be slowly working her way through each wall, knocking down rules as she went. And he couldn't find the will to stop her.

-HTTYD-

**Yes, a not very murder-y chapter! I know!**


	6. Chapter 6

**I won't lie, the first bit of this is probably a terrible joke and I'm not sorry.**

**Then most of the rest is to make up to someone who was disappointed I didn't cover Hiccstrid's first kiss. I hope this is a valid apology!**

-HTTYD-

"Astrid, please."

Giggling, Astrid jabbed her spoon down again.

"I'm a cereal killer!"

Hiccup was probably regretting agreeing to a date that day. Astrid had wanted to try out the cereal cafe, so like proper grown ups they were eating breakfast cereal at two in the afternoon. He'd gone for something called 'Spaceman' cereal, with bits of fudge and little moon shapes in. Astrid opted for 'Unicorn Poop', and Hiccup was eyeing her blue-coloured milk with suspicion as Astrid scooped up some more ridiculously bright cereal. No food should be that colour, she was sure, but it was tasty so she didn't care.

"Stop judging my unicorn poop."

"It's the milk that concerns me."

"It's delicious. Want to try some?"

He shook his head, still looking at it like it might bite. Astrid was more of a risk there. She liked biting, but given Hiccup's visible experience with getting hurt physically Astrid stopped herself. Astrid was finished with her cereal first, Hiccup a slightly slower eater. Doing her best not to make him feel stared at, she looked around at the decor and fiddled with the menu, drank her excessively sugary milkshake until he was done.

"You wanna get dessert?"

"Is that even legal when I just ate a months worth of E numbers?"

Astrid grinned.

"Well, I want another milkshake. Which is kinda the same as the dessert here. Cereal and ice cream. Just drinkable. Then we can go?"

Hiccup nodded, following her up to the counter with their bowls stacked in hand. She ordered her drink while he gave them back, saw him twitch when somebody brushed against his back to get past and reached for his hand as soon as Hiccup was in range. He gave her a gentle smile, let Astrid slide an arm around his waist and hug him. The server cleared their throat, handing over the milkshake Astrid ordered before the two left.

"You ok?"

"Hm? Yeah, fine. Just worrying that you're due a sugar high any minute after that cereal and now your second milkshake."

Astrid laughed.

"My pastry habits give me an impressive sugar tolerance. Back to my place? Or do you need to get going?"

Hiccup pondered.

"I'm gonna call my mom and check on her first. If she's alright, then I'm free."

He moved a few steps down an alleyway to avoid the noise of passersby to make his call, Astrid slurping at her drink while she waited. She couldn't fault him checking before agreeing - he was his mothers only carer, and she couldn't leave the house without him. So if his mom needed to go somewhere, he needed to be there really. Hiccup came back a few minutes later, smiling.

"I'm all yours. I gotta get back for dinner, but moms going for a sleep so I have a few hours."

Hiccup visited her enough that he now had a mug effectively assigned to him, one she always used when he came over. Astrid had never been to his place, but while she wanted to see where he lived and meet his mother, she could understand the reticence. They must have become rather isolated in an attempt at self-preservation, and bringing Hiccup out of his shell was hard work as it was. He might have needed to feel more secure, more certain in Astrid before taking what was obviously a big step to him - he was protective of his dependant mother.

As Astrid handed him his tea, her phone started ringing. Hiccup watched her glance at the screen, frowning.

"It's my mom, do you mind if I get it?"

"Not at all. Moms are important."

He nodded encouragingly, sipping his tea while Astrid answered the call.

"Hey mom, whats up?"

_"Do I need a reason to call my daughter?"_

"No, but you normally have a reason."

Silence lingered for a few seconds, seconds in which Astrid could picture her mother shuffling awkwardly and choosing her words carefully.

_"Whats this I hear about you having a boyfriend?"_

Ah. Astrid supposed she hadn't really been _hiding _Hiccup, but while it was still a budding romance Hiccup was figuring out how to be a part of, she hadn't wanted to scare him off with her mother just yet.

"We haven't been going out long."

_"So there is a boyfriend! When were you going to tell me?"_

"When I'm ready for you to meet him. Which is not now. Is there anything else mother?"

_"Oh, is he there right now?"_

Astrid rolled her eyes, threw an apologetic look to Hiccup where he watched curiously.

"Yes, and no, you can't talk to him."

_"I will meet him! I need to make sure you don't have as questionable a taste in men as you do writing."_

Dropping back against her sofa more heavily, Astrid groaned and ran a hand over her face. She liked writing! Her mother just thought writing about a serial killer in a mystery series was indicative of some deep rooted issues. She looked over at Hiccup again, decidedly certain that her mothers concerns were unfounded.

"Did you just call me up to harass me about dating?"

_"No. I also wanted to ask when you were going to tell me you were questioned by the police."_

"They got their knickers in a twist over my books, they know I haven't done anything but they can't find this Night Fury so they have to look as though they are doing _something. _I promise you mother, I'm not a murderer."

After a few more exchanged comments, she managed to shake off her mother, turning to see Hiccup frowning slightly between sips of tea.

"Sorry about that. Mom still has empty nest syndrome and needs to know everything going on in my life. She also thinks I like serial killers too much."

Hiccup choked on his tea, barely putting the cup aside to cough and splutter. Gasping for breath a few times, his throat finally seemed to clear.

"Is that why she wants to meet me?"

"Sort of. That, and she thinks me dating a guy who got arrested for a bar fight four years ago - after we broke up! - is a telling sign I have terrible taste in men. I promise to keep her away from you as long as possible."

"Why? Is she going to interrogate me?"

Astrid shrugged, downing a mouthful of coffee and feeling almost shocked it was still warm.

"She'll just want a detailed history of your life, your future career plan and a list of your intentions toward me" Hiccup had gone rather pale, and Astrid hastened to reassure him "and I'll tell her to get lost. I like you Hiccup, I won't let her scare you off."

Moving carefully so as not to spook him, Astrid managed to effectively crawl into his lap, drawing the quiet man into a kiss that he returned with a surprising heat, fingers gripping almost too tight at her waist and jaw. It was hard not to urge him on, but Astrid knew he was new to everything and she'd respect his need to go slow. When tentative hands brushed the small of her back where her shirt had ridden up slightly, Astrid made a sound of encouragement, shivering pleasantly when his rough fingertips explored the dip there. His touch along her sides brought out goosebumps on her skin, heart rate beginning to rise as he slowly inched her shirt up.

"Come to bed?" Hiccup drew back, surprised and Astrid soothed her fingers along his jaw "I'm not trying to push you. Just less cramped."

He swallowed thickly, nodded slowly. Astrid got up, taking his hand and leading him to her bed. It wasn't glamorous, but it was functional enough for Astrid to crawl in to in the early hours of the morning when she'd been up late writing. If she'd known she was having company, Astrid would have moved-

"What is that?"

Hiccup held up her stuffed toy, a plushie African Grey parrot she'd had since she was a girl.

"_She_ is Stormfly, and that is her side of the bed. But since I don't want her to get squashed" Astrid plucked the bird from his hands "I'll put her over here to sleep."

Only when she turned to see Hiccup biting back laughter, lips twitching between smile and forced straight-face, did Astrid realise how she was effectively personifying the stuffed toy to somebody who hadn't slept next to her for over a decade.

"Didn't you have stuffed toys as a kid?"

His smile fell, replaced by a tight frown.

"I did for a while. Not anymore."

It was veering into that territory of "Hiccup doesn't talk about that", and Astrid didn't want him saddened. So she sat on her bed, reaching for him without pulling him down. Hiccup slowly let her coax him onto the bed too, his jumper and t-shirt removed before she got him to lie down, laying at his side as she kissed him and stroked his scarred skin. He found his nerve to push her shirt up again, so Astrid slipped it off and let exploring fingers work their way over bare chest and stomach, his eyes adorably wide in surprise as he took in the sight of her.

"What happened here?"

Hiccup brushed a faint scar on her stomach, old and faded by then but a little bumpier than the surrounding skin.

"I had surgery as a kid. Appendicitis."

He nodded, seemingly to himself, before resuming his slow exploration of Astrid's body. She tried not to squirm as she grew wetter, maddeningly aroused by his curious expression and the fact Hiccup felt comfortable enough with her to be lying there with his scars on show. Should that have turned her on? Astrid shrugged to herself. Trust was sexy, she'd decided.

Hiccup was in no rush, almost like he was trying to memorise as he mapped her, leaving Astrid to twitch and throb with want until he _finally _dared brush his fingers across her bra strap, mouth opening and closing as he tried to work the nerve to ask.

"It's fine, go ahead."

His hands proved to be dextrous enough to open the clasp one handed, his heart pounding under her hand resting loosely on his chest as Hiccup raised his arms to slide the bra down off her. Astrid bit her lip as he touched her, breasts sensitive and his touch warm, unable to suppress a moan when his palm dragged over her nipple. Hiccup looked up, concern furrowing his brow.

"Are you ok?"

"Uh-huh. Good noise."

Hiccup repeated the motion, watching her face that time to see her respond. Astrid had never been scrutinised so intently, but it thrilled her as Hiccup's mouth hung open a little, eyes full of a desire he was still learning to understand. Astrid wriggled down to lie next to him properly, pulling him closer to kiss him and run her hand down his back, Hiccup groaned as he felt her bare skin press to his own - when would he have felt such a thing before? - and held her to him with more urgency, the simple intimacy new and almost overwhelming for him.

When Astrid undid his zipper, he tensed at her hands on his hips so she backed off moving his jeans down, just slipped her hand in to feel him twitch in her grip and hear him gasp against her mouth. Her free hand guided his hand to her waist, letting him know he could undress her further if he wanted to. His fingers were shaky as they tugged at fabric, Astrid helping until she felt Hiccup's erection press to her bare stomach, his hand sliding down over her hips to splay across her backside. He drew back after a minute, drinking her in with his eyes.

"You are... a work of art."

It was impossible to ignore how firmly genuine he sounded, and given that Hiccup was himself an artist, Astrid felt like it was an especially true compliment, the best he could say of something he saw to be beautiful.

"So are you."

His face darkened for a beat but Astrid was ready, kissed him to distraction and took his hand, slowly working it down her stomach until he grunted against her mouth as he found her wet.

"That's how turned on I am by you. I think you're beautiful."

Not normally one for lying on her back, Astrid let him put her there so he could observe her properly. Her hand came down to guide his at first, showing Hiccup how she liked to be touched so he could learn. His long artists fingers soon began to find their way, his keen eyes taking in every shake and flush and moan, his cock hard and curved tight up against his stomach where he knelt over her. When Hiccup slid fingers inside her, Astrid couldn't help but clench at them and _he _groaned, mind obviously making the primal connection that he could feel that wet, gripping tightness around his cock.

His eyes slid up her body, tongue coming out to wet dry lips as he panted before meeting her eyes - not something he did particularly often, but sex seemed to bolster him so far and Astrid read the question in his face with ease. Gently nudging him to lay on his back, she shushed his concerns as she moved her hands to his jeans.

"Just enough, or they'll rub me in a not-so-fun way."

Hiccup nodded tightly, and Astrid caught sight of more scars along the top of his thighs, one ragged still-pink scar over his hip that must have hurt so much to even _move _with when it was healing almost making her stop to demand to know who hurt him so she could exact revenge... but Hiccup wasn't ready to talk. Astrid could wait. Just like she'd wait for him to let her see his prosthetic properly; everything was new to him, Astrid wouldn't ask more vulnerability from him than he could handle showing.

"Don't we need... protection?"

He was so cute when he pouted like that, obviously concerned as Astrid moved to straddle him.

"Well, you're a virgin and I'm on the pill, but if you want I have condoms?"

Hiccup frowned a little at the word 'virgin', but when Astrid stroked his cock gently he soon relaxed; if he wanted, she'd happily change that for him right now.

"I... I trust you."

Humming, Astrid moved, watching Hiccup for any sign of doubt as she let him feel warm, slick and soft against his shaft.

"Are you sure?"

She'd certainly wished for more consideration than she'd gotten during her first time; Astrid would give Hiccup what she'd missed. He nodded, eyes riveted as Astrid eased herself down his cock, wet enough to take him but it had been a while for her and Hiccup wasn't thin _everywhere. _His eyes had fallen closed when she looked up, biting his lip and letting out lovely little whimpers.

"Alright?"

"Uhhhh-huh."

Hiccup looked at her again, hips squirming under hers and bucking when she squeezed around him playfully. Astrid leant forward to brace her weight on one hand, the other sliding up into his hair as she kissed him softly. Hiccup moaned weakly against her mouth, eyes wide to take in every detail he could when Astrid sat back up and began to ride him slowly, mindful of overwhelming him.

"Oh gods, oh gods..."

He kept repeating as Astrid moved, occasionally gasping her name as he sought places to put his hands, clutching bedsheets and her thigh. Astrid shifted slightly until he was nudging the right spots inside her on each stroke, knowing he'd not last long but, after his lengthy foreplay earlier, neither would she. She took the hand on her thigh and guided him, mewling _"touch me" _and Hiccup complied. He grunted, bucked, wound tight under her as Astrid moved a little quicker, rode him harder.

Hiccup came with a near-soundless cry, slumping down against the bed sweaty and flushed and _beaming. _Astrid pressed his fingers down, both working her along the final stretch until she spasmed and squeezed at his softening cock with a satisfied sigh. Hiccup was still smiling as Astrid climbed off of him, sliding the length of her body along his side and laying an arm across his chest. His heart had yet to slow, but his breathing was starting to even out again as he turned to look at the naked blonde next to him.

"Officially not a virgin anymore."

He nodded slowly, leaning down and pressing his mouth to hers. Astrid smiled into the kiss, felt his hand move to rest against her back until he was done kissing her. They stayed embraced cosily for a while, but Hiccup eventually pulled away and mumbled that he needed the bathroom. Astrid rolled onto her back while he was gone, stretching and sitting up to look around for something to clean up with, then hunting for clean clothes.

Hiccup returned and pulled on his t-shirt, but didn't put his jumper on right away, which left the scars on his arms exposed and Astrid felt like it was a step for him to just _be _like that with her, no distraction of sex or touching as they laid on her sofa together. One hand tangling with hers, Astrid used the other to draw nonsense shapes on his skin.

"I feel like it's weird to say, but... thank you."

He spoke softly against the back of her hair as Astrid ran her finger along a thin white scar that covered a few centimetres of inner forearm.

"Well, you are _very _welcome."

* * *

Hiccup finished the sweeping lines of blonde, Astrid's face looked up from the page. He'd felt compelled to memorialise the sight of her when she'd laid next to him, wonderfully nude and a beautiful shade of flushed. He dotted the soft, light freckles along her cheeks and collarbones, slightly darker ones on her forearms where skin saw more sun.

He wasn't sure he'd ever see it again for real, so Hiccup had opted to draw it that night.

When he got home from Astrid's place, his mother could tell something was different. Hiccup had no reason to lie to her, so he'd admitted that their relationship had taken quite the leap from kissing and the occasional hand down his pants.

"Did you keep your shirt on?"

For anyone else, that might have been a strange question, but Hiccup knew what she was asking.

"No. She's seen my scars a few times now."

"What did you tell her?"

Hiccup shrugged.

"Nothing. She said I can tell her when I'm ready. Honestly, she doesn't know that much about me. She does all the talking."

He pulled his clothes out of the dryer pile, checking for any residual blood stains but by then he'd gotten pretty good at getting them out. Satisfied, Hiccup folded up his hunting clothes and put them aside.

"Hiccup... you know this can't last."

"Which? Having a girlfriend or getting away with murder?" Hiccup took all of a second to feel guilty for his snappish answer, turning back to face his mother "sorry. I know."

Valka beckoned him over, Hiccup sitting down next to her so she could give him a hug.

"I want you to be happy son, and I know you like this girl. But you know you can't keep that sort of secret from her forever."

She stroked his hair, the way she'd done when Hiccup was a small boy. It had the same soothing effect now that it had then, calming him.

"I know."

The irony was not lost on Hiccup that night, when he'd made them dinner and then left his mother watching TV to go and draw, that he was having more of a moral quandary over whether or not it was fair to break up with Astrid now they'd been physically intimate than he had _ever_ had about killing people.

Astrid's soft smile and bright blue eyes finished, he ran a thumb over her hair on the page. and sighed. It was those eyes, that smile that had drawn him in to begin with. He shaded the edge of her little appendectomy scar, then put the picture away before he got up from his desk, pacing around the basement as though it would help him reach some kind of decision. His thoughts were tumbling, loud and chaotic and Hiccup grit his teeth, trying to fight back the urge that grew with every passing moment.

It certainly put paid to any wonderment Hiccup had about what effect a steady girlfriend might have had on his serial killer career. Losing his virginity hadn't done anything to dull the need. If anything, his screaming mind demanded the only thing that ever truly quieted it.

Hiccup changed his leg, then climbed the stairs and grabbed his freshly laundered clothes. He didn't have much plan other than to go out and prowl, but after he woke his mother from her doze on the sofa and put her to bed, Hiccup changed into his 'Night Fury' outfit.

His mother was right about Astrid.

It couldn't last.

-HTTYD-

**Naughty boy! Get back inside! Honestly, Hiccup is so poorly behaved sometimes...**


	7. Chapter 7

**I think this was the longest gap between chapters uploaded there's been. I didn't realise til it was almost friday again.**

-HTTYD-

Astrid tried not to mope about it. Hiccup didn't _always_ text her back right away. He slept strange hours because sometimes he was up all night with his mom when she was sick. She refused to turn into some clingy, desperate sob story. For all she knew, Hiccup needed time to process after earlier, when physicality between them had climbed several notches from a few clumsy handjobs to her taking his virginity.

Besides, Astrid had writing to work on. Probably.

So she resolutely put her phone down and crossed over to the kitchen, pouring coffee and grabbing a snack bar before she sat at her desk. She definitely didn't keep glancing back at her phone. Thankfully for her sense of dignity, once Astrid got into writing the words began to flow, an adequate distraction from earlier concerns as she tapped out a few gory scenes, occasionally raising her arms in the air to mime stabs or swipes or throws, checking they were humanly possible.

Then came some drama, the mysteries, the near-miss of the police almost catching the killer before he faded into obscurity and unknown again. Astrid hadn't had a writing session like it in a while, words falling onto the page in a seemingly endless stream. Finding her empty coffee mug, Astrid stood and stretched with a groan, rubbing the back of her neck and taking a step to the kitchen when her door knocked. The sound was anxious, quick, and _very _surprising given that Astrid realised it was now gone one in the morning.

Padding over to the door cautiously, Astrid peered through the peephole and pulled back, perplexed. She opened it, eyes wide as she took in the state of the woman in front of her.

"Heather? What... get inside."

Given the hour, she shooed Heather inside before asking questions. There was blood on her cheek and her clothes were torn and rumpled... and Heather had never actually been in her home before. It didn't surprise her Heather _knew _where she lived - Astrid spent enough time at the cafe she worked in after all.

"S-sorry, I just... I ran, and then I realised where I was..."

Still baffled, Astrid dragged a throw from the back of the sofa and slung it around Heather's shaking shoulders.

"Sit down, I'll get coffee."

She was going that way anyway, and Astrid got the feeling she'd need it. Heather held the cup between both hands, looking up at Astrid with a still-developing bruise beneath the blood on her face.

"I saw... I saw the Night Fury."

"You _what_?"

"Well. I saw a guy in all black and a helmet, who jumped both the guys who were attacking me."

"Both? Wait. Slow down. Start from the beginning."

Heather took a mouthful of coffee, seeming to brace herself before she launched into her tale.

"I was on a date. We were walking back, he suggested a shortcut back to his place and I said alright. The next thing I know, he's dragged me down an alleyway and there was another guy there. The way they talked, they knew each other. I tried to fight them off, but one of them hit me and I banged my head on the wall behind me. I was sorta dizzy, and then there was just this... whistling."

"Whistling?"

Astrid tried not to get too interested in the details - Heather had been attacked, serial killer trivia could come second for once.

"Yeah. It was... eerie. They turned around, cus they didn't wanna get caught I guess. And there was the Night Fury at the end of the alleyway. At least, I'm assuming thats who it was. Didn't say a word. Just walked over with a knife in his hand and stabbed one of them. He was so calm the guy didn't even move right away, like they didn't expect it. I ran for it. Looked back to see if he was going to follow me or if he was losing against two guys, but they were both on the ground and he was... I've never seen anything like it."

"What?"

"Just... so _angry. _I could hear the sound of his boots on their head over my heart pounding. I mean, you read about what the Night Fury does in the papers sometimes, but to see it? Gods, it was terrifying. And I say that as the one he _saved._"

"Yeah, but I gotta say I have limited sympathy for the guys trying to rape you being scared."

Heather nodded, drinking more coffee.

"Part of me says nobody deserves that, but then part of me also agrees with you."

Astrid couldn't help herself any longer.

"So, what did he look like? You sure it's a he?"

"I didn't see much, to be honest. Helmet. Leather jacket, leather bottoms. Kinda shiny. These big, heavy boots. That plus the helmet? If it weren't for the knife, I'd have figured they were just a motorcycle rider passing by at the right time. But there was no... shape here" Heather gestured to her chest "and they were pretty tall. Could be a she, I suppose. But yeah... being saved by this creepy angel of death was not on my plans for the night."

Would it be rude of her to get her notepad? Probably. Astrid picked her cup back up, for something else to do with her hands. Heather apologised again.

"Sorry I just appeared at your door."

"Hey, don't be silly. Safety is more important than sleep, and I was awake anyway."

"You were?"

"Yeah. Writing. And pining. But mostly writing."

"Pining? Over that guy? Hi... Hiccup, right?"

"I'm kidding. He was here earlier. And hasn't answered my text yet. Which is fine. I'm fine."

Heather chuckled, a little tension leaving her frame at last.

"Right. Well, he seemed pretty into you when I saw you guys together. I guess he's just busy."

Astrid nodded.

"Yeah. He takes care of his mom, so I know he's just busy. I'm just being consumed by a giddy schoolgirl crush in between writing about a serial killer. Totally normal, right?"

"Yeah. Totally."

She got Heather some clean clothes - they weren't that differently shaped, after all - and cleaned the cut on her cheek.

"I don't know if you plan on going to the cops or not, but here, you can put your stuff in this."

Astrid handed Heather a small bag from the cupboard, so she could keep her clothes to either toss out or take in as evidence... whatever she decided. Heather dumped her clothes in there, Astrid's faded _Pokemon _t-shirt and some plain black bottoms covering her now.

"You can stay here if you want, go home when it's light out."

"Thanks. Seriously, thank you."

She doubted Heather would be sleeping anyway, and Astrid wasn't at work that day so she didn't _need _sleep urgently. So they ended up ordering late night pizza, eating and drinking and talking. Conversation varied between details on the Night Fury and just general chat - boyfriends, jobs, Astrid's books and her subsequent interrogations by the police.

"So your mom almost cockblocked you?"

"Yeah, although none of us knew that at the time. I wasn't _planning _on it, it just sorta happened."

Astrid wasn't going to share that it had been Hiccup's first time, obviously, but it was nice to commiserate with Heather a little and even better to see her laugh, easing the dark cloud of fear from earlier. Stomach overly full and protesting the day that included breakfast cereal and ice cream shakes for lunch, followed by pizza at a later hour than she usually ate more than a cereal bar or cupcake at, Astrid wasn't looking forward to running the next day but knew she'd probably do it anyway.

She saw Heather off the next morning still wearing Astrid's clothes, heading home in a taxi and thanking Astrid profusedly again for the past few hours. Astrid waved off her concerns - after what had happened to Heather, Astrid couldn't imagine she'd have wanted to be alone either.

Hiccup still hadn't texted her back though.

* * *

The Night Fury had never taken out _two _at once before. But the handiwork was unmistakeable, from the brutality to the branding.

Eret scrubbed a hand through his hair, feeling the band that kept it tied back had come loose - probably from all the hand-through-hair he'd been doing for the past few hours, after having spent three hours at the crime scene surrounded by blood splatter and bodies and what looked like the remnants of some fabric. He wasn't hopeful, especially with the blood on it, but there was always a slim chance that material belonged to the Fury themselves.

"Hey, reindeer boy!"

Rubbing his eyes, Eret stood and stuck his head out the door.

"What?"

"Someone here you should talk to."

Teeny gestured to the woman stood behind him, who held a bag to her chest and looked a little sick. He didn't miss the bruise on her cheek, the tension in her stance. Eret pulled the door behind him closed - graphic photos didn't tend to do members of the public much good - and moved to a desk, offering a seat to the woman.

"I'm Inspector Eret Hunter, but you can call me Eret. How can I help you?"

"Heather. Heather Oswaldson. I uh. I saw what happened. Well. Some of it. Sort of. I was there."

"You were... where?"

Heather leaned in close, hands flexing on the bag as her voice came out a hoarse whisper.

"I saw the Night Fury."

Heart leaping - was this a _lead? _Finally? - Eret tried not to become aggressive in his search for information and took a deep breath.

"Ok. Tell me what happened."

"Those two guys... you found two, right?" Eret nodded "yeah. Well, I was who they were attacking. These are my clothes from last night. The Night Fury saved me."

Handing over the bag in her hands, Heather went on to tell Eret how her date had lured her into a pretty terrible situation, and how she'd ran for her life and spent the night wondering what to do, whether to come in and report or not.

"I know it's tough, especially if they saved you, but you're doing the right thing. Can you describe them?"

"I can do one better."

"Oh?"

Heather slipped off a backpack she had on, reached in and pulled out a sketchpad. She flipped through a few pages, then turned and presented a sketch to him.

"You drew them?"

"I tried. It was dark and I was scared, but this is how I remember stuff best. Will it help?"

Eret scanned the paper. Patchy jeans, a heavy rain jacket. A _helmet. _Not that he left witnesses much, but that probably made for an even more useless description. The Night Fury must have started covering up after they had that line up, knowing they'd been close to seen. Plus the boots - Eret knew those boots pretty well, from all the foot prints and impressions left behind. He had a pair of them - a new pair, but the right size and brand - in evidence, for comparison.

"Jeans? You're sure?"

"Yup. I thought it was weird when I was drawing it, but then I remember growing up that my brother always wore jeans when we were playing in the mud and stuff. Sturdy and usually easy to clean, and cheap to replace. And the rain jacket is waterproof, so it... makes sense. Sorry. I was up all night thinking about everything."

He offered her a reassuring smile.

"Understandable. I can get you the number of a rape crisis service, if you want to consider counselling?"

Live victims were rare with the Night Fury. And while Heather hadn't been the Fury's target, she'd seen them in action _and _been minutes away from a whole other set of trauma too. Eret didn't condone the vigilante killings, but he could at least understand this victims reticence to come forward.

"Uh. Thanks. Sure."

Eret grabbed her a leaflet, showed her the numbers on the back.

"Is there anything else you can tell me? How tall they were? Maybe a limp? Left or right handed? Did they say anything or make any sounds?"

Heather frowned, thinking for a while before she answered.

"I don't... not that I can remember. I couldn't tell their height much, but... my height. I think?" she held up her hands, as though checking before clenching her right fist "right hand had the knife. And no. I don't remember any sounds other than my footsteps."

Pulling on a pair of gloves to handle the bag he'd been given, Eret tucked it into a paper evidence bag and filled the info on it out, ready to be transferred. Then he handed Heather a card with a number on.

"If you think of anything else, call me. Any time, day or night."

"Ok. Are you keeping that picture?"

"If it's alright with you?"

"Sure" Heather tugged it until it seperated from her sketchpad, handed it over "here. Can I go?"

"Yeah. Safe travels. And thank you. You've been a big help."

She left, having dropped off the most evidence they'd probably had for a Night Fury case in a while now. Eret took the bag to its rightful spot so they could begin processing, then pinned the sketch up in the Night Fury room. He probably ought to have documented Heather's injury, but since one of the dead guys had given it to her, it wasn't much use. They couldn't try the corpse for attempted rape, and not even justification would help the Night Fury when they caught them.

If they still had the death penalty in England, Eret knew that would be where the Fury was headed.

If he had to take a guess, Eret would have said the one in the sketch looked male, but it wasn't easy to tell. Their raincoat was too big, came down almost to the knees and gave everything a shapeless, baggy appearance. He wouldn't let blinders fall over him. Looking through Heather's information, he googled her workplace - it might have been important, and noticed something quite peculiar.

"Hey Teeny! C'mere."

"Sup Eret?"

"We have Hoffersons address here somewhere?"

"Yeah, hang on" Teeny shuffled some papers, extracted a sheet with her information "here. Why?"

"Well" Eret checked the addresses, nodding to himself "the place Heather works is basically on her front doorstep."

Eret didn't really believe in coincidences.

He pegged Heather's details up next to Astrid's, then glanced at his watch. He was racking up a lot of overtime lately, and should have left a few minutes ago really, but the Night Fury seemed to be escalating, though the numbers did fluctuate anyway, It wasn't like one kill a month. Sometimes there were no deaths for weeks, a few months even. Then there could be three or four in the space of two months. No rhyme or reason, just a growing kill count.

Eret did eventually go home, though he had Night Fury stuff there too, and basically just worked at a different desk in his pyjama bottoms with better coffee. He took a break for the gym, needing to do _something _with all the restless energy other than pace around his house, wracking his brains.

The week he spent waiting for the forensics to get back to him about Heather's clothes and the fabric felt like the longest week ever, and proved effectively useless - the fabric remnant was from her torn clothing, and the only DNA on them was her own and the two dead guys. No help at all other than to back up Heather's story, which told him what he already knew about the Night Fury - a vigilante, out hunting rapists and abusers, dispensing a bloodied fist of justice that some, even his own colleagues, thought was doing more good than harm overall. But Eret knew vigilantes never stuck it out forever, and just because only 'bad people' were dying now didn't suddenly change the law on murder.

One day the Night Fury might kill someone innocent, and stopping them first was obviously a better idea.

Reluctant to tell her they didn't have anything from her clothes, Eret still went to check on Heather. He found her at work, opting to order something while he was there and talking to her at the counter.

"Sorry I couldn't be more help."

"Hey, a sketch is a lot more than we had of them before. I just thought I'd let you know."

"I uh, appreciate it. Anything else?"

Realising she meant refreshments-wise, Eret shook his head, taking the little paper bag of food and his re-useable takeout coffee cup now full of fresh, hopefully delicious caffeine. As he turned to leave, Eret couldn't believe what he saw.

He didn't really believe in coincidences.

-HTTYD-

**Ooooh, Eret son of Eret has something on his miiiiiind.**

**And _bad bad Heather_. Lying to the police about what you heard or what they were wearing is against the law dontcha know?  
**

**But then so is murder I guess.**


	8. Chapter 8

****I was asked quite recently if this story would be Valcupstrid, and the answer is no. I won't call Hiccup and Valka's relationship in any way healthy, they're chronically codependent on each other, but it's not sexual.****

-HTTYD-

Hiccup had had a lifetimes worth of experience that said the feeling of _you're being watched _was not a good one. When he turned, he found amber eyes on he and Astrid, confused and curious and something a little harder to define. Astrid noticed _him _looking, followed his line of sight until she was looking at the stranger too.

"Huh. Guess he's here to talk to Heather."

Turning back to his... girlfriend? maybe? Hiccup raised a querying eyebrow.

"Who is he, and why is he staring at us?"

Astrid squeezed his hand.

"Relax, babe. He's a cop" was that supposed to _relax _him? "and I guess he's surprised to see me here. He's one of the ones who has questioned me on, you know, that."

Hiccup nodded tightly, looking back at the police officer who had finally taken his leave, though he threw a glance back at them before disappearing for good. Along with Hiccup's appetite. He pushed the half a pastry away, stomach twisting.

"You alright?"

"Yeah. Just... not hungry. You want that?"

Astrid didn't need asking twice, his leftovers vanished along with her own before being washed down with the sweet coffee she had.

Hiccup had _tried._ He really had.

But he couldn't seem to stay away from her. So rather than tell him not to, his mother just told Hiccup to be careful, to be smart - and not to kill Astrid. To anyone else, it might have been absurd to even think it, but Hiccup understood her warning. They always looked at the boyfriend first. Astrid was safe from him though; nothing about her was anything like the people he hunted for. Astrid had been sweet and gentle and understanding even when dealing with a clueless virgin who could barely take his shirt off without shaking.

He knew it could never truly last, not without Astrid eventually figuring it out... but for the moment, Hiccup gave up caring about that and focused on the fleeting moments of genuine happiness and _safety _he got with Astrid. It was something he'd never felt from anyone but his mother, and even then they were different for some quite major reasons.

"Come on, let's go back to my place and I'll explain the cop thing?"

Hiccup let himself be led, still thankful Astrid had forgiven his little disappearing act where he'd spent several days trying to convince himself he could be away from her. Of course, in that time he'd also saved Astrid's sugar-dealing friend from two would-be rapists, and chalked up his first two-for-one killing to boot. Hiccup had thought it would be harder, but they were either thrown, shocked or _stupid _enough not to move when he approached them with a knife and one had gone down with no fight. The second was down before Heather cleared the end of the alleyway.

It had been what he needed, but leaving another live witness was never going to be a good idea. Heather gave no indications she thought Hiccup was her vigilante rescuer when Astrid took him to the bakery again, which was something of a relief. He and Astrid had been talking more about him for the moment, Hiccup apologising for 'ghosting' her a bit, and Astrid sweetly reassuring him it was no big deal. They'd taken a big step for him, and he was allowed to need time.

He just had better not do it again without a word. Astrid was happy to wait for him to deal with something, so long as she knew that was what he was doing.

Even without the whole serial killer thing, Hiccup knew he didn't deserve someone _this _kind and understanding, had no idea what Astrid really saw in him with his scars and childhood trauma and not much else. But she wanted him, and despite all his common sense yelling it was a bad idea, Hiccup wanted her.

Astrid asked before she got into his lap, smiled when he agreed to it and slid her arm around his neck, playing lightly with Hiccup's hair.

"Ok, first things first. You don't tell Heather I told you this" Hiccup nodded, trying not to feel incredulous about being told that for something he was present during "but she went on a date the other day, and it... didn't go well."

That was a _date?_ Hiccup wished he'd hit the guys harder.

"Yeah, the police involvement gave that away."

Astrid rolled her eyes at his sarcasm, but there was a small smile on her lips as she continued.

"_Anyway,_ yeah, so she got lured down an alley and jumped by these two guys. And then - you won't believe this! - she was saved by the Night Fury."

"Wow. That must have been..."

"Oh, she said it was terrifying" Hiccup supposed it could have been from her side of it "but he let her go."

"He?"

"Well, she thinks so. But anyway, yeah, she got away and ended up here. We spent the night talking, and she left without telling me if she was gonna go to the cops about what she saw or not."

Hiccup frowned. Had Heather turned him in as much as anyone who saw a masked vigilante in a dark alleyway could?

"I am guessing she did?"

Astrid nodded, shifting slightly to get comfortable in his lap before she resumed her story.

"Yeah. Because she knew they'd come looking for her anyway, cus she'd been texting one of the 'victims'" Astrid all but spat the word, and Hiccup somehow found her even more attractive "so she went in first. _But, _and she told me this later, she drew them a sketch of the Night Fury. And flat out _lied _about it."

_That _had Hiccup confused.

"She what?"

"Yeah. She drew a totally different outfit, said stuff like that she couldn't remember if he was right or left handed, and said he didn't make a sound to the cops, but told me there was this weird whistling sound."

"Whistling?"

Astrid nodded again, humming.

"Mhmm. Weird, right? I mean, does the Night Fury warn people he's coming?"

Hiccup hadn't thought of it like that. He just liked the way they usually jumped and looked around, fearful of being caught in their criminal act before he approached them. It hadn't really worked on those two brutes Heather had had her run-in with, but he still felt compelled to do it. He knew the urge controlled him as much as he controlled it, maybe more.

"So wait. Heather went to the cops, to lie to them?"

"Pretty much. I guess she decided she didn't want to give them too much info on the Night Fury after he saved her."

Heather would never know just how relieved Hiccup was about that. He _hated _leaving witnesses, but she had... been a terrible one, as far as the cops knew.

"So what did they look like?"

"Don't you read the paper?"

"Not unless I go out to get it, and even then it's more for mom cus she can't get out into the world much."

Astrid hopped out of his lap, crossed over to her table in the corner and flicked through a few things, extracting a newspaper and holding up the front cover. He'd made the front? Must be a slow news day. She handed the paper over, letting Hiccup take in the sketch they now had of the Night Fury.

It didn't look much like him. The helmet was kind of similar, he guessed. And the boots were distinctive, but then the police already knew what sort of boots he wore - tread patterns were a dead giveaway there. Hiccup never wore those boots anywhere else though. But the waterproof overcoat and _jeans_? Definitely fake. And Heather had definitely seen enough that these falsehoods were intentional.

"Could be anyone."

"True. But they didn't know that the Night Fury wore a helmet before, now they do."

"So they can question every motorcyclist in the city?"

Astrid snorted.

"Fair point. I mostly follow this stuff for inspiration for my books."

"And because you have a borderline-unhealthy love of serial killers, according to your mother."

Astrid adopted a feigned-innocence expression.

"I don't know _what _you mean..."

"Sure you don't."

Hiccup put the paper aside as Astrid reclaimed his lap, stroking his jaw as she kissed him sweetly. He could let her do that for hours and never get bored, but sometimes when she shifted she'd press against a scar that still twinged or her leg would brush against his prosthetic and knee, and Hiccup would pull away on instinct because his body did not react well to the possibility of pain.

"Hey, it's fine. You're allowed to stop me whenever you want, whether it's just too much or cus something feels wrong. Alright?"

He shrugged, fighting the urge to curl up defensively. Astrid soothed him still, waiting for him to untense before she initiated tentative cuddles and he slowly relaxed into it. Gods, she was so _patient _and Hiccup didn't know how she did it. He found himself difficult to deal with, and he had years of practice at it.

"Up for watching a movie? Or do you need to go soon?"

Hiccup checked the time, nodded.

"Yeah, I have time."

Astrid beamed, getting up to turn on her DVD player and peruse the shelves of options nearby. She held up a few, but Hiccup insisted she choose; he wasn't much for watching movies, so anything was probably a surprise for him. She eventually put on one that was full of teenage angst and half-witted romantic storylines that would make most cringe, but Hiccup got the feeling Astrid wasn't too invested in actually _watching _the movie. Her approach was always gentle, wary of pushing Hiccup and never actually jumping right to anything, but her sounds of encouragement and the way her mouth pressed to his with more urgency when he responded were a heady thing to experience.

Hiccup had never really understood sex; he'd only ever seen something heinous and abhorrent wielded in a violent, sadistic way against his mother as a boy. But others had enthused about it endlessly - the boys at school, strangers on the street, articles all over the internet. Everyone else seemed to think it was something fantastic, pure, _loving _even. It took a while for HIccup to really understand the difference, and even then he didn't really think about actually doing it before he met Astrid.

And she'd guided him to it slowly. Taught Hiccup how things felt _good._ Let him move at his own speed. Just like now, as Astrid nudged questioningly at his jumper, not stripping him without his consent. Hiccup helped her remove it, Astrid shedding her own shirt in turn before they were kissing again, the feel of warm skin against his own still novel and thrilling as the heat that pooled between his thighs, cock swelling in response to Astrid like it never really had before he met her. The sensation of touch on his scars, of the way he actually felt he could let his guard down a little - she'd seen him topless a dozen times by then, and Astrid never asked, never pushed, only stroked him tenderly and behaved like his skin _wasn't_ a roadmap of abuse.

Astrid wasn't shy about her body like he was, undressed for him without hesitation and _gods _she was beautiful, soft and strong and covered with those barely-there freckles in random places. She guided still-learning hands, reaching up to untie the braid she kept her hair in and combing it through with her fingers until golden locks fell around her shoulders, brushing his cheeks when Astrid kissed him again before moaning needily at the feel of his fingers rubbing her, hands on his shoulders to brace herself as she pushed into Hiccup's hand, mewling "_more" _in a way that made him twitch with want.

Then the feeling of her seating herself on his cock... _indescribable. _Her soft, wet heat stole his breath, his mind, left Hiccup with little more than a primal urge to hold tight her hips as she rode him steadily, every slick slide of her blanking his brain again and again. He didn't last all that long, but Astrid reassured him that that was normal, that he'd get better with time and smirked gleefully when he couldn't take it any more.

By the time they'd cleaned up and re-dressed, the movie was almost over and he had no idea what had gone on in it. Astrid was soft, giggly, almost giddy. As though being with Hiccup in all his awkward, inexperienced glory was some great key to happiness.

He glanced over at the newspaper again, frowning at the words **_Night Fury Sketch!_** splashed across the front. If anything, he thought it made them look even more incompetent but Hiccup supposed they were just happy to have _something. _Not that it was a true something.

Astrid walked him back to his car when it was time for him to go, sliding her arms around his neck as she stretched up on tip toes to kiss him goodbye rather firmly.

"Try not to disappear on me again, yeah?"

Hiccup nodded silently, couldn't form another response but to kiss her again. Even now, she wasn't actually putting that much pressure on him. Just asking for him to be decent enough to let her know in advance, really, if he planned on 'disappearing' again. But he doubted that he would; Hiccup was a little too far gone on this quirky blonde who made him feel things he hadn't known himself capable of.

"Bye."

"Yeah, bye. Don't go out after dark."

Astrid laughed, shaking her head.

"If the Night Fury caught me in the tiny walk back from here to my place after it somehow got pitch black in that time, then honestly it's good enough timing that I'd probably let him. For a minute."

Smiling shortly, Hiccup slid into his car and texted his mother to let her know he was on his way back now. She sent back a request for chicken, as they were out and she knew enough that Hiccup had to pass a shop that would sell it on his way back. He waited for Astrid to get out of the way so he wouldn't knock her down while easing out of the little car park, and caught sight of her growing smaller in the rear-view mirror before he turned a corner and she disappeared from view. Next he saw the bakery in the reflection, remembered the incident with the police officer earlier.

Hiccup didn't like how that cop had looked at them.

* * *

Eret flipped through the files on the table, searching for the photo previously discarded and Teeny watched him, bemused by the strange degree of urgency Eret displayed.

"What's going on Eret?"

"Did you know _he" _Eret held up the picture of Haddock, the discounted accidental ID "is dating _her?"_

He held up the photo of Astrid Hofferson. Teeny frowned.

"What, really?"

"Yeah. I went to see that one who got away last week, Heather Oswaldson? And I caught her at work. When I was turning to leave, I saw these two, sat in _that _cafe and looking pretty damn cosy."

Teeny shrugged.

"Weird, but we already knew Hofferson liked Berserk Bakery. What's Haddock got to do with any of it?"

Laying their photos out across the table, Hofferson's books just above them, Eret tapped his fingers on his chin.

"I don't know, but... there's _something _here. I just need to work out what."

Patting his shoulder, Teeny offered a sympathetic look.

"Dude, don't let this case eat you alive. You're not the first to fail to catch the Night Fury, and you've landed the biggest lead so far with that sketch and the victim. Take a breath. Think this through before you accuse some disabled kid who takes care of his mom, or go after his girlfriend cus of her choice in writing topics and pastry."

With that, Teeny left Eret there to stare at the table. He wasn't going crazy. There _had _to be more to it than he was seeing - there were just too many convenient similarities for it to all be pure chance. Moving both Haddock and Hofferson to the suspect folder, Eret began looking for whatever information they had on the two. He'd figure it out.

-HTTYD-

**Ereeeeet. Stop that. You're gonna drive yourself crazy!**


	9. Chapter 9

**I'm so used to writing dorky teddy bear Eret that I sometimes just imagine policeman!Eret creeping around going "if I were a serial killer, where would I hide..."**

-HTTYD-

"Can I draw you?"

Astrid looked up at him, surprise on her face.

"Sure. Shall I take off my clothes and lie sexily across the sofa like in Titanic?"

Hiccup frowned.

"What?"

"Have you never seen that film?"

He shook his head.

"No. I know it's about a boat... right?"

Astrid nodded, rolling her eyes as she picked up a biscuit and leant back to get comfortable.

"The Titanic was this oversized disaster waiting to happen, as my dad called it. Anyway, it basically follows the boat hitting an iceberg and killing a lot of people cus of a lack of lifeboats, so when the boat sank they all froze to death... but in the movie that's only half of it, we also follow this weird romance thing where rich girl likes poor boy, but she's meant to be marrying rich dick. There's a really _terrible_ song. He drowns cus she wouldn't share a door. And also he draws her naked."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow.

"And you know all of this because..."

"It was one of my mothers favourite movies. Many hours of my childhood lost to it, and my mother wonders why I like serial killers. It's enough to drive anyone to murder!"

He chuckled. She was a little dramatic at times, but he rather liked it.

"Is that what made _your_ book character a killer?"

"Yeah, too much Titanic. It would totally work. Anyway. Clothes on or off?"

Hiccup didn't comment that he'd drawn her naked already - she didn't know about _that _one, after all.

"Clothes on will be fine, I want to draw your face."

"Alright, just let me go fix my hair. You draw like freaking photos, I don't need a bad hair day memorialised."

He watched her go, bemused, retrieving his sketchbook and pencils from his bag. The scars on his forearm weren't pleasant viewing, but Hiccup was well used to the way his skin looked and _slowly _working on being less self conscious around Astrid when she was so clearly not put off by them.

Astrid came back with her hair freshly combed out, falling around her shoulders in soft waves where her braid had left it slightly curled. Her hair was utterly beautiful, caught the light and reflected like a white-gold waterfall. He'd seen pictures when she was a teenager, the darker yellow fading to this lighter shade she had now. He liked them both, but there was something hypnotic to the artist in him about how the light caught her _just _so.

"Do I need to do anything?"

"Can you sit facing me? Get comfortable, I'll only need you to pose for like ten minutes and then I can go from memory."

She complied, a sweet and serene smile on her face as she sat for his drawing, undoubtedly Hiccup's favourite subject. Voluntary subject, anyway. Drawing the deaths he caused was more of a _compulsion_ than drawing Astrid, which was something he just wanted to do because she was so very, very exquisite to look at. Even as an artist, Hiccup had always struggled to simply appreciate, to just look at things because they were pretty, at least not without wondering how they could be destroyed as Alvin had tried to destroy he and his mother.

He didn't struggle with Astrid.

Putting pencil to paper, he began to sketch the shapes of her face - a soft, round jaw, small nose, full cheeks, big eyes. There was a wonderful natural sweep to the way her hair fell over her forehead, brushing along the top of her eyes unless she shoved it out of the way as she often did when working on something.

Her lips often quirked up to one side, her smiles sometimes subtle and other times megawatt, beaming and bright. They always reached her eyes though, a sparkle there of actual happiness that was far more telling than the movement of her face. Though Hiccup appreciated her smiles all the same. He was still getting used to somebody other than his mother being so _visibly _happy to see him.

He let her know he was done with the basics and she could move again, while Hiccup filled in the finer details - her lightly freckled cheeks, her hair as it tumbled down over her shoulders, the shadow of collarbone visible above the collar of her t-shirt. Astrid was relatively patient, but began trying to peek at it when Hiccup was almost done, eager to see the finished product as she braided her hair back up, complaining it got in the way a lot but that she liked it too much to cut it off.

"I'm almost finished!"

"Fiiiiine."

Astrid slumped back in her seat, throwing furtive looks until Hiccup finally finished and turned the sketchbook around to show her.

"Wow. Honestly, that's cheating."

"What is?"

"Being able to draw like that!"

"It took a while for me to learn again after... never mind."

He saw Astrid's curiousity, but she didn't demand he finish. Instead, she took the sketchbook and admired the image more closely, then turned to Hiccup with a question.

"What does your mom look like?"

"Huh?"

"Just curious. You don't really talk about her a lot, I'm just wondering if she looks like you or not."

"Uh... go back three pages in that."

Astrid turned back to the paper, turning back until she found the sketch he'd done of Valka about a week ago. She'd been having a fairly good day pain-wise, and they'd spent some time out in the garden just enjoying the fresh air, the sunshine. Hiccup captured it in a drawing, liking the memory.

"Wow. She's beautiful. And you look a lot like her."

Hiccup smiled.

"Thanks."

He waited, completely expecting Astrid to start making noises about why she hadn't met his mother yet. Instead, she put the sketchbook down and shuffled along the sofa until she was settled between his legs, head resting on his chest.

"Would you be willing to meet my mom? It's totally fine if you're not, I'll tell her it's not happening."

"Why does she even want to meet me?"

Astrid looked at him with something like incredulity, then her face softened.

"Oh, right. New at this. You make me happy, and she can see that. So naturally, she needs to reassure herself that you aren't secretly an axe murderer."

Well, technically Hiccup was alright there. He'd never used an axe. Part of his brain was now wondering though...

"What if she doesn't like me?"

"I'm a grown up, it's not up to her. But I don't think there's anything about you she wouldn't like. So you're fine."

_I wouldn't be so sure._

"Aside from my incredible awkwardness, tons of scars and the whole metal leg thing?"

"So what? I like you just as you are. Honestly your helping with my books will probably bother her most. Remember I said she thinks I like serial killers too much? She probably suspects you might just be as crazy as I am."

Astrid rolled her eyes. Hiccup felt her mother might have a point, since she'd been dating an actual serial killer for a few months now. But she didn't know that.

"I... ok. Not today though, right?"

"No, of course not. I'll talk to my mom about when she's free, but if you're busy with your mom just say and we'll work out another time. Sound good?"

_Not really, _Hiccup thought, but he could see it mattered to Astrid and maybe part of him was hoping the decision would be out of his hands. If her mother didn't approve, would they break up? It was a daunting prospect, but Hiccup also had the rationality to acknowledge that they weren't a permanent thing. She'd find out what he was, and leave him. If he didn't crack and leave her first, that was.

Really, the best case scenario for Hiccup at that point was not getting turned in by Astrid, because his terrible sense of self-preservation was showing harder than ever when it came to Astrid.

* * *

After the lectures from Teeny hadn't stopped, Eret began taking more of his work home with him. So he left the station at a reasonable hour most nights, but he wasn't getting any more sleep.

Haddock, Hofferson and Oswaldson all sat on his wall, though seperate - he still thought Heather was an unwitting victim, her date that night had a string of charges the length of Eret's arm, mostly for being horrid to partners, and the other man with him not much better. If Eret had seen them in a bar acting that way, he'd probably have been tempted to knock some respect into them. But that didn't justify stabbing and kicking them to death, and leaving their bodies in an alleyway.

If Eret agreed with what the Night Fury did, he risked turning into someone like them.

He sat down, looking at papers in his lap and pictures on the wall. There was no way those two couldn't be connected somehow. From Hofferson's book to Haddock's identity parade, their casual presence at the bakery the morning after the night before. He couldn't shake it. They _had _to be involved somehow, somewhere.

Eret just had to find where.

They'd already discounted Hofferson's possible connections - there were virtually none, and all superficial at best. And Haddock... well, he had none. Hel, he barely existed at all on paper - he and his mother were all but total recluses. Both on disability, and generally they appeared to keep to themselves. At first, Teeny's comment about not going after Haddock sounded pretty sensible.

But the same open-mindedness that meant Eret never discounted the possibility of a female serial was the same one that told him not to assume Haddock _incapable _of being the Night Fury.

Reaching for the banana on his desk, Eret ate and paced, threw the peel out of the window to put in the compost bin later, then resumed working. Ideally, he needed to get hold of Haddock's medical records, which could've given him a better insight into whether or not he was capable of murder or not. But without those, Eret would just have to work with what he had.

Of course, it could just as easily have been his girlfriend that was the culprit. A simple Google search of her name brought up that Hofferson had won a few martial arts contests in her teens, so she was _physically _able to fight people bigger than her, and well, by the looks of her victory pictures. And then there were the books, which already proved Astrid Hofferson was capable of coming up with elaborate deaths, creative methodology. She was intelligent, strong, no shrinking violet even when they had taken her in for questioning.

But Eret was growing increasingly certain that one of them was actually the elusive Night Fury, or they knew who it was.

It gave him pause on Heather's sketch for a minute, but he shook that off. Heather had definitely been attacked, and said her rescuer wore a helmet. Eret also had no idea how long Haddock and Hofferson had been an item - was it before she wrote her book? That would have been too much to consider by chance, surely.

He worked until his eyes blurred, crawled into bed and woke too soon to get right back to it. Eret stared at the files even though the details were burned into his brain, as though he might have missed something the previous twenty or thirty times he'd read it, as though a new detail might jump out. He had to leave that bit of investigation behind to go to work, where he and a couple of others talked back and forth, hopeless but determined all the same to find something new.

"It's been a few weeks since the last one."

"Yeah, but the last one was a double."

"Still... it makes me kind of wary."

Eret shrugged, chewing on his snack bar as he watched his colleagues shuffle papers around in an attempt to look like they knew what they were doing.

"Maybe it's just harder to find anyone now everyones scared shitless to go out at night."

"That's not stopped him before."

"How's he doing it then? I mean, everyone he's gone for has had _some _kind of record, or been caught in the act by the looks of things."

There was a general hum, then Teeny piped in.

"You think they've accessed police records?"

"Wouldn't we know if we'd been hacked?"

"Depends how good a hacker they are. I'm gonna contact the tech guys. Let's look at this from a new angle."

For some reason, that comment sparked something in Eret's mind. A new angle... he got up, mind turning over as Eret headed for the nearest computer and began to look for a new set of information. He had to look up a marriage record first, but it got him the name he was after and something immediately jumped out at him as he ran his searches.

No updated drivers license. No National Insurance records. No change to their credit history. Nothing in _years. _In fact, as Eret backdated everything he was looking at, he found it all tied back to a particular point.

They'd said the step-father bailed, but Eret couldn't find anything to suggest he'd turned up anywhere ever again since that day.

Was he looking at the Night Fury's first kill?

-HTTYD-

**Eret, son of Eret, ye be getting too nosy!**


	10. Chapter 10

**If this were a movie, I feel like there'd be a scene with dramatic music where the Night Fury is behind Eret, holding a knife, but when he looks around there's nobody there.**

-HTTYD-

"Whatchu need this for?"

"Cutting up firewood, that's what it's for isn't it?"

He had to show ID, but it wasn't scanned and Hiccup paid cash for his new hand axe. Sure, he could have ordered online, but that meant a paper trail. Hiccup was smarter than that. He put the axe into his backpack, then headed out to hop on the bus home.

Public transport was a strange experience whenever he overheard people talking about him. The Night Fury was the stuff of gossip, after all, and Hiccup wondered how surprised anyone would be to learn that said Night Fury sat amongst them on a bus, axe in his bag tucked neatly next to his mothers pain meds and a bag of jelly sweets each for them. Tapping his fingers against his knees, Hiccup counted down the stops until he was almost home, listening to teenage girls with some serious issues enthuse about how badly they wanted to meet him.

Aside from a curious psychologist trying to learn, Hiccup could never fathom why anybody would _want _to meet a real life murderer.

He was relieved to get off at his stop, seeing a text from Astrid on his phone complaining she was bored at work and wished either Hiccup or his cooking were there. Typing out a reply, Hiccup headed in to check on his mother. She was napping on the sofa, DVD title screen looping over and over in the background until he switched it off. It didn't stir her, so he went to empty his bag and make her a cup of tea before he woke her, then headed out to the garden with his axe. Hiccup wanted to make sure he could wield it first - it was the sort of weapon he could quite easily hurt himself more than a victim with, after all.

It was a weighty thing, he supposed. More than a knife or standard hammer, anyway. He sought something sturdy enough to take the hit without simply disintegrating, lugged a heavy branch over and rested it on the crumbling stone bench that was left by the previous owners. The way the thinner part of the wood cleaved so neatly in two was _incredibly_ satisfying, but Hiccup also found something theraputic in the repeated blows it took to bring apart the thicker grain.

After a few more tries, in which Hiccup found it quite hard to maintain aim over and over, he laid the axe down and wiped sweat from his face. It was a workout, he'd give it that much. Hiccup looked over the broken wood, tracing where the cut had been smooth and where it had been ragged, seeing the different marks it left in the remnants of branch.

"Do I even want to know?"

"Probably not. I left you sweets on the side."

She thanked him, sat with her tea and jelly treats while Hiccup continued to work with his axe, realising quite quickly it would be a labour intensive weapon to use. He'd still do it, but given how it appeared it would be a messy, time-consuming one, Hiccup figured he'd save it for someone he _really _hated.

Astrid called him that night, left Hiccup on speakerphone so she could talk and type, mostly talking about her typing and occasionally quizzing Hiccup for his opinion on things like blood splatter and hammers.

"So I'll see you tomorrow yeah?"

"Yeah, I gotta take mom to her appointment in the morning but I'll text you when I've gotten her home."

"Alright. See you then!"

"Try and get some sleep tonight."

"No promises!"

Astrid hung up, leaving Hiccup with a smile he couldn't seem to suppress on his face. She had a bad habit of staying up too late writing, and being very tired the next day when Hiccup saw her. He found it endearing, but worried she might become sleep deprived.

Next morning was a rush of his mother oversleeping and struggling to get up, hasty breakfast and then an almost-too-fast drive to the hospital for her appointment with the doctor. They made it on time - and since it was an NHS hospital, they had to wait anyway - which meant they were sat in the waiting room for a while, but Hiccup had his phone off as per the notice next to the glaring receptionist.

"All good?"

"No worse, which I suppose is the same thing."

Hiccup took her home, made sure she ate and drank, put water in her room and checked she'd taken her medication before he let her go for her rest. Going out almost always came with the need for a nap, otherwise Hiccup would feel much more guilt for leaving so soon to go see Astrid.

"Call if you need me, alright?"

"I will" his mother yawned, kissed his forehead "now go and enjoy your afternoon son."

"Love you mom."

"Love you too."

Heading outside, Hiccup sent Astrid a text and was only just getting into his car when she answered.

_"Could you pick me up?"_

**"Sure, where are you?"**

Astrid's answer surprised him somewhat.

_"The police station. They pulled me in to talk about my internet search history."_

Hiccup frowned. They thought she was him. That was why they kept quizzing her. Naturally, even though he felt uncomfortable about walking in to a copshop, Hiccup agreed to go get her since it was his fault they kept dragging her in to begin with.

He pulled up outside the building, sucked in a few deep breaths and got out of his car to head in. There was a receptionist who demanded to know why he was there, and Hiccup tried not to leap back from the sharp tone; his startle reflex was still pretty bad, but not as bad as it had been a couple of years ago.

"You have my girlfriend. Astrid Hofferson? This tall, blonde, probably slightly terrifying. You think shes the Night Fury?"

They shooed him in just to shut him up, probably. Hiccup found it quite funny, really, just because they had no idea they were shooing in the very killer they were looking for. Heading through another door, Hiccup looked around for distinctive blonde hair and found none. Instead, he saw an open door and an empty room with seats in, caught sight of something very familiar up on a board.

He probably shouldn't... but Hiccup stepped in anyway. Sure enough, it was a room full of his own handiwork. In order and everything. They were missing a few of his early ones, before Hiccup began using the ring to brand. Each victim had at least two pictures - one of the brand, one of their bashed in faces, each with names and a scribble of their convictions if they had them.

Well, they weren't _complete _idiots then. They had definitely worked out Hiccup was killing abusers at some point, which was when they began calling him a vigilante. On the table in the middle of the room were papers upon papers, detailed descriptions of all the injuries, the causes of death, the miniscule evidence left behind - a few discarded weapons, the two witnesses, one of whom was Heather. And... photos. One of Heather, one of Astrid... a few people he didn't recognise, probably possible suspects in some of the murders. And then one of _him. _

Was he on someones radar?

"Hey, you're not meant to be in there!"

A guy the size of a _car _saw him there, barely buttoned into his uniform and several inches taller than Hiccup.

"Sorry. I'm looking for my girlfriend, saw my own face through the open door."

Hiccup held up the photo of himself, then pointed to the one of Astrid.

"Seen her anywhere?"

"This way. She's being questioned right now, but you can wait out here."

Hiccup followed him out, intentionally favouring his full leg slightly and seeing it was noticed by the police officer.

"Need to sit?"

"Yeah, thanks."

He took the offered seat, glancing around the room and recognising a couple of those who worked there from when he'd been in that ID parade. It would never cease to amuse him how eagerly they'd cleared him and sent him off - there was no way some poor, disabled amputee who took care of his mother was a _murderer, _it was clearly mistaken identity and on his way they sent him, with an alibi to boot.

"So, what do you think?"

"Huh? You talking to me?"

Hiccup looked up to the new voice, spied a policeman he didn't recognise. Tall, broad in the shoulders and with a strange tattoo on the side of his neck. He stood, feeling very much towered over by the large man. Hiccup wasn't much shorter than him, but considerably thinner and dressed in jumper and jeans, not a perfectly pressed uniform.

"Yes, I'm talking to you."

"What do I think about... what? Who are you?"

"Oh, my mistake. Inspector Eret Hunter, I'm heading up the Night Fury investigation."

"Well from what I hear, you aren't doing a very good job. And this makes... five times? You've pulled Astrid in now. Do you really think she's your killer?"

The Inspector eyed Hiccup in a way that made his skin prickle. It was almost predatory.

"No, I don't. But bringing her in wasn't my choice, and I think she knows more than she's letting on."

Well, Hiccup was quite certain this cop was wrong, but he wasn't about to say that.

"Why is my picture in your Night Fury room? Am I a suspect again?"

"You weren't a suspect before, and I can't discuss an ongoing investigation with you."

Hiccup was not sure he liked how that was worded. He wasn't a suspect before... was he one now? He looked away from Inspector Hunter, glancing around the room they were in before he caught sight of who he'd turned up for to begin with.

"Astrid!"

"Hey babe. Sorry, they kept me longer than I thought."

"It's fine. Everything alright?"

Astrid slid a gentle arm around his back, leant up to kiss him before smiling.

"Yep. They got nothing and they know it. Ready to go, or am I interrupting?"

Hiccup restrained himself from rolling his eyes, felt Astrid slide her hand down his arm to lace their fingers together. Her joke had clearly unstuck the cop hovering over Hiccup, who cleared his throat and gestured toward the door. Astrid smartly waited for them to be outside before she began asking about the Inspector, who Hiccup had felt watching them leave.

"What was that about?"

"They caught me in the Night Fury room, cus I wanted to know why my photo was in there. I think I annoyed them by asking for you and saying they thought you were a serial killer."

"Wait, you got a look in the Night Fury room? Tell me ever- wait! Why did they have _your _picture in there?"

Hiccup shrugged.

"Did I not tell you about that? I was pulled in for a lineup, you know, the right height and age to fill in spots so some woman could pick out who she saw one night. She picked me, but I was home with my mom while she was sick. So they let me go."

Astrid peered up at him, eyes wide.

"Wow. So did you do it?"

For a second, Hiccup was so stunned by her blunt question he couldn't answer. Astrid burst out laughing.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you! Are you alright?"

His expression seemed to have worried her, Astrid's fingers brushing his cheek gently.

"I'm fine, honestly. It was just a surprising question. C'mon, let's get out of here."

Hiccup hoped Astrid never noticed he hadn't actually said _no._

* * *

It must have taken some nerve, Eret decided, for Haddock to stroll right into the station. He wondered how much enjoyment there was, looking at his own handiwork and the frantic attempts of the police to find _anything _on him.

To look at him, Eret knew it seemed ridiculous, and he was trying not to get blinders and lose focus. But the more he looked at the male with his slight frame and big green eyes much older than his face, the more Eret felt like they'd been missing the obvious all that time.

Something about him just seemed... strange.

"Whats on your mind reindeer boy?"

Teeny quizzed, nudging Eret and offering a protein bar - they'd bonded over many hours in the gym together, so he knew Eret ate such things regularly. Eret took it, staring at the foil wrapper in his hands and knowing his colleague wasn't really sold on Eret's theory.

"Night Fury, what else?"

"Yeah. I caught Hoffersons boyfriend in the Night Fury room. You'd think those sort of photos would bother someone more, but I guess he is going out with the woman who managed to write something gruesome enough that it passed for a Fury kill."

"Yeah. Or he did it."

Teeny snorted, rolled his eyes, shook his head.

"Told you, you're barking if you go that route. There's nothing to him."

"Could say the same of Hofferson, and we've seen what she can do here in the station."

Eret wanted to show Teeny all the work he'd done, the history he'd been building on Haddock - not that there was much. To all appearances, Henry Haddock was just a young man who cared for his mother after both were injured in an accident. He'd lost his father, been abandoned by his stepfather.

He had suspicions the stepfather had been abusive - Haddock's mother hadn't had so many health complaints fifteen years back, after all. Sure, age might have been a factor, but Eret was trying to consider what could have triggered the particular trail of vigilante murders. An abusive parent would definitely do it. Serial killers often had violent, traumatic childhoods after all. It was becoming something of a fixation for Eret at times - he had books on serial killer psychology piling up in his bedroom, but he was supposed to leave that at home and come to work and work the case like everyone else, with open eyes and a broad net for suspects.

Eret was too young to have found the case that would drive him mad. Standing with a sigh, Eret walked into the room full of murder victim pictures, looking around and seeing Haddock had pulled his own picture out and it laid on top.

"I gotta say, they have good taste."

"What?"

"Haddock and Hofferson. I wouldn't kick either of 'em outta bed. Worried I might break Haddock, but hey."

"Teeny, that's just..." _horrifyingly true _"so inappropriate. They're both possible murder suspects."

Teeny shrugged, grinning.

"I'm not gonna hit on them. Just an observation. Gotta keep the spirits up with all... _this _going on" he gestured around them "not that I really think either of them did it."

Eret shook his head, ignoring that he'd experienced very similar thoughts. The problem with _him _finding Haddock... attractive? Well, attractive wasn't the word really, more of an intrigue, the allure of a mystery in the air around him. Anyway, the issue for Eret was that he _did _think Haddock did it. So he shouldn't be eyeing the man with any interest other than professional whatsoever.

Rubbing his face, Eret sighed. He obviously needed to get some kind of human interaction. Work had absorbed him so strongly he barely made his four trips a week to the gym, let alone anything else. Especially anything like dating. He hadn't had a partner since a few months after he graduated as an officer, and since then only a handful of brief encounters, dwindling to nothing as this Night Fury case overtook him.

Little more happened with the case for the better part of a week, and Eret felt like his mind was turning in circles, working on his personal theory at home and getting little done at work, because they had nothing new to go on.

The problem was, something new to go on always came with a body count.

-HTTYD-

**I'm having so much fun with, as he was wonderfully called in a review, human disaster Eret.**

**This story might not be updated for a couple of weeks, I'm a little all over the place lately and finding it real hard to work on stories, and I want to get my buffer for this one back up to four chapters. But we'll see!**


	11. Chapter 11

**This chapter was written amidst a really bad depressive episode, so the content might be darker than usual in places. Idk. It's a serial killer story, so I guess it's a little Dead Dove to warn but still.  
**

**\- to anyone wondering what I meant by taking time to update - I wanted my buffer of four chapters back. It's been almost 2 weeks and I made it to three as a buffer, but as I'm struggling with when I'll finish the fourth, I thought I'd update now. Patience appreciated.**

-HTTYD-

He'd been feeling the itch for a few days now. Constantly under his skin, fingers twitching. But his mother had come down with a nasty bug, and Hiccup spent much of his time taking care of her for three nights straight, barely getting enough time to eat and sleep let alone commit murder.

They were close to taking her to the hospital when her symptoms finally began to ease, and both slept heavily that day. Valka kept down food and water for several hours, and she could see the way Hiccup grew more tense and unsettled with the growing urge to sate his bloodlust.

"Go. I'll only be sleeping anyway."

"Are you sure? I can wait a night."

He didn't want to, but Hiccup would put it off for her. His mother nodded, brushing her hair off her face where a few loose strands had fallen down.

"I'm sure."

"Alright. You need help washing your hair before bed?"

Her hair wasn't as long as it used to be, but it was long enough that she often needed Hiccup's help - holding her arms above her head was strenous on shoulders that had suffered multiple dislocations and tendon damage from being viciously yanked around. Sometimes Hiccup was amazed she could move at all, though a lot of it was down to the past few years where Valka had been able to get treatment like physio and pain relief. The damage was done, but they could manage the symptoms somewhat now.. And for what she couldn't do, she had her son.

It was a quiet moment, calm before the storm for Hiccup as he washed her hair, made sure the towel was in easy reach and left his mother to get herself ready for bed, with the usual comment to call if she needed him. Some days were worse than others for her, but while Hiccup was still in the kitchen making sure his hunting outfit was all clean and ready, his mother joined him in there.

"Be careful son."

Valka kissed his temple, stroked his hair.

"I always am mom."

It was a cold night out, but Hiccup was used to that in all his nights out. The walk was relaxing, the weight of the axe in his hand reassuring, the handle fitting his gloved palm well. Hiccup had his routine down pretty well for those nights he looked for someone specific, tracking their phone and learning their habits just one of his... skills. And so Hiccup knew where he was going, who he was seeking. He knew who wouldn't live to see their next sunrise.

Sometimes Hiccup wondered how they had the nerve to go outside at night, when by now most people had to know the Night Fury had a type.

Still, it made his life easier that they did. Hiccup hadn't had to break into any houses yet, which was probably for the best. Someone could overhear.

He'd paced these streets so many times, Hiccup could even play with the prey before he attacked. A low, warning whistle had his victim looking around, shuffling nervously. A stone knocked by his boot hit an empty glass bottle, but in otherwise deserted streets the sound was enough to draw the victims attention. They detoured, sliding down a side alley and Hiccup grinned beneath his helmet before taking his next turn. Sure enough, he found them at the corner, thrilling in the visible jolt of fear for his near-invisible self in such limited light. Composing themself, they tried to straighten up, offset Hiccup.

"Watch where you're goin' mate!"

Hiccup laughed. It made the victim take a step back in surprise, their back hitting a filthy brick wall.

"Are you... you're the Night Fury."

It wasn't a question by the time they said it. And Hiccup supposed the axe slamming into their head was answer enough. Humans were a little tougher than wood, but his first strike was enough to knock the man down to the ground. After that, it was easier. He made a few pathetic attempts to crawl, pleading for his life with final breaths.

He'd stopped moving for a while by the time Hiccup was done, surveying his handiwork with a calmness he could only find after taking a life. The axe was incredibly efficient, and Hiccup had to peel back blood soaked fabric to find skin to brand. Hiccup loathed any abuser, really, but he carried a special hatred for rapists and he hoped it showed in what was left of the body on the ground.

His clothes were wetter than usual - with his knife, the spatter was a little more confined. The axe was _messy, _and the alleyway and the murderer were both covered in crimson that shone when the moon broke through clouds again. Curiousity sated for the weapon, Hiccup debated abandoning it but thought better of it - he'd bought it not long ago, and with that Hunter cop was apparently suspecting him for whatever reason, Hiccup wasn't about to be _that _obvious.

Valka was sleeping when Hiccup got back, so she didn't see the state of him as Hiccup began the process of cleaning himself up. Once he'd soaked it in bleach for a bit, Hiccup dumped the axe in the garden to be ignored for a while. A hot shower and fresh clothes later, Hiccup was barely recognisable as the one who'd just left a new corpse on the streets to be found. The only guilt Hiccup ever felt was for the people who _found _the body - innocently passing along only to see the remnants of a rage churning away, the frightened little boy now the vicious hunter man. He considered getting a stack of untraceable phones from the darker bowels of the internet, where everything from drugs to murder was for sale in secret, and just calling the cops to taunt them by leaving the phones by the body.

He went to bed feeling the weight lifted, woke to a text from Astrid that he scanned with blurry eyes.

_"Yanno, the Night Fury could at least let me know he's gonna rip off my books before I finish writing them now."_

**"Just woke up, what do you mean?"**

Hiccup had been to the bathroom, had a clean face and fresh mouth before Astrid answered.

_"I just finished an axe murder scene, and guess what was on the news this morning?"_

Had he made the news already? That was quick. He flicked the TV on while the kettle was boiling, saw the usual scene of a white forensics tent awkwardly erected up against an alley wall. There was blood beyond the boundary, attempts to conceal with plastic sheeting but the breezy day was giving glimpses to the news camera.

**"How does the Night Fury rip you off before you write it?"**

Hiccup hadn't known _Astrid_ was writing an _axe murder _scene, because she hadn't told him and he'd made a deal with himself not to hack her computer or phone without very good reason ever since they started dating. So far, he hadn't had a reason.

_"I don't know, serial killer magic. Either that or its one bloody big coincidence. I'm thinking of just photocopying the finished product and sending one to the station and one to the publisher for edits."_

He couldn't help but laugh.

**"If you do, address it specifically to Inspector Eret Hunter, he's the lead on the Night Fury case."**

Astrid had to stop texting so she could go to work, and Hiccup had breakfast for two to make, which was eaten while he and his mother watched the news. He caught sight of the Inspector, who looked exhausted and a little pale as he exited the forensics tent, ignored the reporter and climbed into an unmarked police car nearby.

"You recognise him?"

His mother asked, seeming to notice Hiccup following him in particular.

"Yeah. I think he suspects me."

"You what?"

Hiccup shrugged, chewed another spoonful of breakfast before he carried on.

"Relax. Nobody else does. He saw me with Astrid at her favourite bakery right after I killed those two guys who were attacking her friend. All he has is a 'mistaken' ID and me being in the right place at the wrong time once, eating pastry with my girlfriend. I'm not worried."

Shaking her head, Valka took a swallow of her tea.

"Still, you must be careful son. Don't get cocky, or careless."

He nodded, reaching to pat her arm gently.

"I won't. I promise."

* * *

Astrid flopped back in her computer chair, neck stiff and back sore but she was grinning, satisfied the final scene was done. If it wasn't a _really _bad thing, Astrid would have said she owed the Night Fury some thanks. All the serial killing going on had been incredibly inspiring for her own serial killer book, and Astrid had churned out her first and second drafts in half the time of the previous book.

"One more go over, then its off to be carved up by the professionals."

The go over could wait until tomorrow, Astrid decided. Her wrists were killing her from pressing on the desk, her whole body aching and her mind both joyful to have finished rewriting the final chapter and exhausted from how much had gone in to it all. So Astrid treated herself to a cookie with her tea, then left mindless TV on until she felt it an acceptably late hour to go to bed, even if it was still 'early'.

"I'm getting old."

Astrid complained to Stormfly as she got into bed, though her stuffed animal had no answer other than to continue lying there looking cute. She got up early enough to start the final go-over of her work, finding multiple spots where Hiccup had helped, or found something out for her to ensure the antics of her character were as realistic as possible. Honestly, Astrid would have loved to have met him sooner - her first book might have been better then too.

Finished with that, Astrid remembered Hiccup's encouragement with a smile as she e-mailed the work off. Her hand hovered over the mouse before clicking on _print, _meandering off to get food while the pages printed out. Then she stapled it together, tucked the lot into an envelope and giggled to herself as she put it in her bag. Was Hiccup a bad influence? Astrid shrugged to herself, setting off toward the gym with intent to drop her work at the police station.

"Excuse me, is Inspector Hunter in?"

The man on reception seemed surprised to see Astrid there, at least without an escort of cops who planned to interrogate her. He pointed her through, and Astrid stepped into the room and looked around. She caught sight of the inspector heading through a door that closed behind him, headed right to it herself and knocked. The door opened to reveal a bewildered looking policecman.

"Miss Hofferson?"

Astrid caught sight of a few crime scene photos behind him, but his breadth and height blocked most of her view.

"Hi! I brought you something."

He looked perplexed as Astrid handed over the envelope, winked and headed off before he had a chance to ask. She'd left a post-it note on the front letting him know it wasn't professionally edited yet, but she thought it would save him having to _buy _the next copy.

She texted Hiccup to let him know she'd done it, and he sent back an expression of amusement, then told her he hoped she had fun at the gym. Smiling, Astrid headed off to get her sweat on, leaving an hour and a half later with aching muscles and far less stress. There was a great relief to having finally fired off the book too, a break now before it came back for she and her publisher to hammer out final details before it was officially _done, _and then there was another break before Astrid started the next one.

But first, she had to go home, shower and call her mother.

After that she called Hiccup, ensuring all plans tied together so she could finally get her mother off her back about the boyfriend. A girl could only take so much mother-hassle.

"I hope you warned her I have the social skills of a turnip."

Astrid burst out laughing, able to picture perfectly how Hiccup's expression would look to match his deadpan tone.

"I did, don't worry. She just wants to meet you, alright?"

"Alright. She's not gonna hug me is she?"

Remembering how very difficult Hiccup found physical contact at the best of times, Astrid confirmed she'd warned her mother to not grab hold of him.

"So she already knows I'm weird."

Astrid sighed, wishing she could hug him in reassurance but that was difficult over the phone.

"So what? She knows I'm weird. Normal is boring. Are you coming over today?"

"Sure, I have a couple of hours after lunch, I can fit you in to my hectic schedule."

"Asshole. I'll see you later."

As they hung up, Astrid marvelled inwardly at the change in him. Hiccup was _always _sarcastic, biting wit hidden beneath quiet awkwardness, but he'd definitely gotten more comfortable with her over the months - she no longer feared him taking it the wrong way if they were bantering back and forth like just then.

There were still times Hiccup was withdrawn, complicated and sometimes completely closed off. There were situations Astrid had to be mindful with him, particularly during sex - Hiccup's only experience was her, and Astrid had to sometimes balance showing him how she liked it with not upsetting him by saying she wasn't enjoying it.

Still... they had a lot of fun. He was never the one to initiate more than kissing, but Hiccup also never had any problem with Astrid coming on to him, and she _knew _he couldn't fake it - if she touched him the wrong way, he'd shrink back and they were figuring those triggers out together.

"Hey babe."

Astrid greeted him after opening the door, smiling at the sight of him. He smiled in return, stepped through when invited in.

"How's your mom?"

"She's good. Was just heading for a nap after lunch when I left."

He mentioned she napped a lot. Astrid figured whatever was going on with her made her tired. Either that or she kept as peculiar hours as her son did, and rested in the day to make up for being awake at night.

Not that it mattered either way, Astrid mused as she took Hiccup's hand, led him into the next room so they could sit and she could kiss his cute face, enjoying that he was there again. Hiccup reciprocated gently, rough fingertips brushing her cheek as they kissed.

"I uh... I wanna try something."

"Is it kinky?"

Astrid couldn't resist, and Hiccup rolled his eyes but there was a small smirk at the side of his mouth, though it faded as he thought more.

"No. I uh... I wanted to try taking my jeans off. Properly. If you... if that's ok with you."

They'd been having sex for a few months by then, but Hiccup kept his bottoms on every time - Astrid didn't push it, knew he was self-conscious of his prosthetic and the scars on his legs. Astrid tried not to spook him as she nodded, strangely eager to see. She had a thing for scars. Hel, she had a thing for _Hiccup. _There was exactly zero chance that she'd be put off, but Hiccup would probably need to see that to believe it.

"Now? Or do you want to just relax for a bit first?"

They laid down on the sofa for a while, Astrid curling comfortably against his chest as Hiccup played with her hair. He was quiet, though that wasn't unusual for him really. After he'd relaxed more, Hiccup tipped his head and kissed her gently. His hands were often slow to wander, but he was gaining more confidence and Astrid moaned encouragingly against his mouth when Hiccup slid a hand down her back, using it to pull her tighter against him.

Astrid was quite a fan of being on top, but she wouldn't deny there was something incredibly enjoyable about the weight of Hiccup against her as they shifted on the sofa until she was under him. Thriving on his growing confidence and comfort with her, Astrid slid her fingers through his hair as they kissed, humming happily when Hiccup's hand slipped under her shirt to stroke her skin.

"I uh... bed?"

Hiccup muttered, still shy on the initiation front but Astrid heard him loud and clear, nodding up at his curious face. They headed toward her room, Astrid making to draw him down to the mattress - after she moved Stormfly, of course - but he stopped her, lowering his hands to the hem of his jumper and lifting it off with his t-shirt. The top half wasn't new for them; Astrid knew his scarred torso pretty well, and he rarely flinched when touched there anymore.

His hands moved to his waistband, undoing the fastening first before he began to falter. Astrid saw him struggle, crawled along the bed and sat in front of him.

"I can distract you if you want?"

His face creased before he cottoned on to what Astrid was implying, lowering shaking hands slowly before nodding. Astrid pulled his bottoms down as far as he was used to, not surprised he'd gone soft when he was clearly in a little distress over what was clearly a big hurdle for him. She'd stop if she thought he needed it, but Hiccup relaxed almost immediately when Astrid put her mouth on him, placing kisses over a scar that went from thigh to hip before licking playfully at his cock. Hiccup responded pretty quickly, groaning when Astrid wrapped her lips around him, feeling him swell further in her mouth as she sucked him to hardness.

He tensed when Astrid pulled his jeans down more, but didn't stop her, hips rocking gently into her mouth with little huffs and pants. She rubbed her fingers gently across the back of his thighs, finding more scars - thicker, older, ragged. Those she thought were probably actually from the accident, the back of his prosthetic warmed by skin but the texture different enough for her to know despite not being able to see it. Hiccup tensed again, but Astrid distracted him with lips and tongue, deep-throating him a little until she was sure he was paying attention only to her mouth again.

"Come lie down."

Hiccup complied, watching her every move but Astrid left his jeans by his knees for the moment, only glancing at his slim, scarred thighs before resuming her _distractions. _He didn't completely relax, but Astrid didn't expect him to the first time he was properly showing her his prosthetic.

Curling fingers around the base of his cock, Astrid ran her tongue around his glans before she pulled off, hand still stroking him to keep Hiccup feeling good.

"Think you can handle the rest of the way off?"

He nodded, whining when Astrid let go of him and pushing up on his elbows to watch her take off his bottoms completely. She was gentle, careful, slow to make sure she navigated them over the prosthetic properly before they were off completely. Hiccup's breath was still coming in short pants but Astrid thought that might be nerves. Exploring hands started at the inside of his knee, not lingering over the prosthetic or any particular scar, just showing Hiccup she was as happy to touch his scarred legs as she was his scarred chest and back. He wriggled when she reached his inner thigh, so Astrid ran her fingers between a couple of scars, found the blank skin there to be quite sensitive as his breath hitched.

"Uh, Astrid?"

"Yeah?"

"You uh... you're still dressed."

Astrid glanced down, realised he was right that she'd been distracted by him enough to not have stripped herself down. Winking, she set about rectifying it quickly, then laid herself over Hiccup's bare body and kissed him soundly.

"How are you feeling?"

"Exposed. But ok, I think."

Kissing his jaw, Astrid pushed herself into a seated position, rubbing soothing circles over his chest.

"Ok enough to keep going, or do you wanna slow down?"

Hiccup shook his head, still hard from her mouth despite the removing his jeans completely.

"I can keep going."

Grinning, Astrid nodded before she moved down, watching the way his jaw went slack with pleasure as she took him in inch by inch until she was sat snug on his thighs. Running her hand over his tattooed shoulder, Astrid leant forward enough to kiss him again, enjoying the strained noises he made at the feel of her shifting around. They'd tried with Hiccup on top a few times, but both preferred Astrid on top and she _really _didn't mind.

She took it slow for a while, encouraging Hiccup to relax completely and only moving faster when he had. His hips bucked into her as Astrid rode him, working with her to bring them both off; he was a good study, followed Astrid's encouragement and instruction for where she liked to be touched, caressed her with artists fingers and something between lust and reverence in his face as he did so.

"Good, babe?"

"Uhhh, so good..."

Hiccup's head twisted to the side, cords of his neck standing out as the strain to hold out for Astrid - something he was getting _much _better at - began to wear at him. Astrid forgot herself in the heat of the moment, leaning forward to latch on to exposed skin with teeth and suction until Hiccup whimpered beneath her.

She pulled away, a little panicked herself - Hiccup was scared to be hurt, and she'd possibly just caused him pain. When he turned his head to look at her, his eyes were wide and mouth open, fingers on her hips tighter than usual.

"Are you alright?"

He nodded tightly.

"I... I kinda liked it."

Relieved, Astrid kept going with his encouragement, watching the bruise that bloomed proudly against his pale throat stretch as his head rolled back again, pleasure taking him over as Astrid pushed him to the edge and right on over it. He came with a full-body shudder, twitching and shaking under her for a minute or two before his body began to calm again. Dragging her eyes away from her mark on his throat, Astrid pushed herself off of him, grabbing something to catch his come leaking out of her before she clambered back onto the bed and laid next to him.

Hiccup turned and burrowed his face against her chest, arms a little too tight around her but Astrid waited, letting him work through whatever was going on his head for a few minutes and he slowly unfurled, no longer hugging her with rib-cracking strength.

"I don't deserve you."

Frowning where he couldn't see her, Astrid ran a hand up and down his back, trying to soothe the sudden tremors in his frame.

"Hey, hey. I'm not going anywhere, ok?"

Hiccup continued to shake occasionally, mumbling nonsense until he went quiet. She thought he'd fallen asleep, but when she looked down his eyes were still open. A few more minutes silence, he muttered an apology and pulled his jeans on before heading to the bathroom. Astrid wondered if he'd pushed himself too far, resolved to ask him when he came back. She hadn't come, but was more focused on making Hiccup feel good earlier, and she could take care of herself later. _After _she figured out what was wrong with her boyfriend.

He came back a few minutes later, still shirtless as he sat next to a still-nude Astrid, rubbing a hand through his hair with a sigh.

"Sorry. I know you didn't sign up for mildly unstable mood swings."

"How do you know?" she pushed herself up, leaning in to his side "Hiccup, I know you're... you have a past, I can _see _that. I want you to be able to talk to me about it, but only when you're ready. For now, you sometimes need a minute or get upset. That's ok. You're allowed to have emotions you know."

He shrugged, then realised he'd shouldered her chin and apologised.

"Lie down with me?"

Hiccup did so, and they cuddled lazily for a while until Hiccup let out a short chuckle as Astrid's stomach grumbled.

"I guess that's my cue to feed you."

He got up then, pulling on his t-shirt but not his jumper - a fairly normal attire for him in her place, not comfortable shirtless but reasonably comfortable to let her see his arms whenever by then. Astrid watched him go, then got up to grab clean clothes and head to the bathroom.

There was clearly _so much _going on under the surface with Hiccup, and Astrid wanted to know _all_ of it.

-HTTYD-

**Here's an axe murder and some gentle smut. Variety is the spice of life and all...**


	12. Chapter 12

**Already announced on tumblr, but after MAK13 is uploaded tomorrow, I'm on an indefinite hiatus from HTTYD fics. I need a break.  
**

-HTTYD-

"Oh, aren't you handsome?"

"Mom!"

"What? He is! Well done love."

Astrid rolled her eyes at her mother, seeing how tense Hiccup was to have her so close though thankfully, her mother wasn't touching him.

"You promised not to scare him off, now back up."

"Oh, alright."

Hiccup relaxed as soon as he had space again, Astrid keeping distance save for reaching to squeeze his hand reassuringly.

"It's nice to meet you Mrs Hofferson."

"Oh, Ingrid please, Mrs Hofferson makes me feel like I'm at work!"

He nodded at her tightly, smile looking a little forced but he was _trying _and Astrid adored him for it. When Astrid implied they should sit, he perched right in the corner of the sofa and seemed to be on the verge of curling up into a ball. Astrid sat next to him, slipping an arm around his waist to anchor her anxious boyfriend. He threw her a grateful look, then pushed himself to look at least in the _direction _of her mother, if not right at her face.

"So, what is it you do Henry? Or do people really call you Hiccup?"

"They really do. I uh... I take care of my mom. She has health issues."

Astrid threw her mother a glare, hearing the "anything else?" on her tongue and _not _wanting Hiccup guilted about the fact he didn't hold down a steady job either. She knew he worked on his laptop at times, but not precisely _what _he did. Astrid had suggested he do art commissions, he was _so _talented, but Hiccup pointed out he had trouble with his hands at times and that he'd feel guilty making people wait for days when they were bad.

"That's... very good of you."

"Well, she took care of me. Now I take care of her."

"I see. So... what do you think of my daughters little side hobby?"

"You mean Danish pastry?"

Astrid snorted at Hiccup's even tone - he knew what her mother meant, but was playing along and it made her smile to see his personality come through again.

"No, the murder books!"

"Oh. I help with them."

Astrid grinned at her mothers owlish blinking, clearly surprised by the quiet, unassuming boy apparently assisting in Astrid's serial killer fascination.

"How, exactly?"

"Well, I spent a lot of time indoors watching TV, first because of my leg and later because of taking care of mom. So I saw a lot of crime documentaries. And I have a friend training in Forensics, so anything _I _don't know, I ask him. I don't sleep regular hours either, so when Astrid's up late writing, she calls me to ask for help."

She wouldn't be surprised if that was the most Hiccup said to her mother all day, but it had done the trick - her mother officially thought Hiccup was weird. Which was fine. He was, but so was Astrid. At least they were in good company, and he wasn't scared away by her books.

"Seems you're quite the catch for her then."

"Astrid seems to think so. I'm not so sure, but I'm not complaining."

Astrid nudged him, offered a deadpan Hiccup a reassuring smile.

"Don't listen to him, he's brilliant."

Hiccup laughed then.

"Be quiet, I like you. Is that how it is?"

Astrid nodded, beaming.

"I'm glad you understand."

Hiccup was visibly relieved to escape to her kitchen - he was making them lunch - a short while later, back in a place he felt more comfortable, where things were organised (_now_... although Astrid reckoned Hiccup was one where's-the-ladle incident away from putting stickers in her kitchen) and he could lose himself in the process.

With the door closed behind him, Astrid saw her mother shuffle closer, preparing for the interrogation.

"He's awfully quiet."

"He's nervous, he's never met you before. He's never had a serious relationship before."

Astrid wasn't going to say he was a virgin before her - Hiccup was allowed his privacy, but she didn't want her mother judging his learning curve. Astrid was happy to watch him flourish, and he was definitely slowly but surely finding his way. They had no real problems. Astrid's only real niggle was no overnights, because she'd not been to his place yet, and he never stayed the night at hers because of needing to be back for dinner with his mother by about eight pm at the latest. And she could _wait _for him to be ready for that, absolutely understood why he was so protective of his mother given what she suspected both had gone through at the hands of his stepfather.

"Hm. So, what's he like with you?"

"Well, we can talk about my books and he never gets bored or grossed out. He makes me laugh. And he's always feeding me."

She caught the faint eyeroll at the mention of Hiccup liking her books, then a fond smile at the mention of food.

"No wonder you like him then. You do like your grub."

"Exactly. The knowledge about getting blood out of wool is a bonus."

"Oh, _Astrid!_"

"Yes, mother?"

"I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised, you being so awfully fascinated by murderers that you're dating another one."

"A murderer?"

Astrid grinned, sticking her tongue out between her teeth when her mother shook her head.

"That implies _you... _oh, never mind. Are you happy with him?"

"Absolutely. He's amazing."

And she meant it, wholeheartedly. It seemed to appease mother Hofferson, who relaxed into her seat with a sigh of resignation before smiling.

"Well, I couldn't change your mind if I wanted to, and he seems sweet enough I suppose. He's not _actually _a serial killer, is he?"

They heard something clang in the kitchen, followed by Hiccup swearing before Astrid could even chide her mother for such a ridiculous question, which Astrid was pretty sure had been asked in jest anyway.

"Everything alright in there?"

Astrid asked as she headed over, opening the door to find him picking up a (thankfully empty) saucepan, looking flustered as he made sure nothing else was on the floor.

"Fine. Just dropped it."

She saw him shaking his hand out, figured it had seized up on him and crossed over. Hiccup was tense, so she waited until he turned to look at her before she risked touching him in case he spooked.

"Hey, it's ok. Is your hand ok?"

He nodded, let Astrid slip her arms around him though she felt him shake a little.

"You want some help?"

"Thanks, but no. I got it."

She squeezed him gently, stretched up to kiss his jaw before reluctantly pulling away. Astrid liked the way his jumper smelled, soft and comfortable and clean. Just in case, she pecked a kiss on his hand and saw a small smile spread over his face.

"Better?"

"Much. Thanks."

Astrid left him to it, went back to where her mother waited.

"Everything alright?"

"Yeah. He dropped a saucepan, thats all. No damage, no mess. But he's cute so I had to cuddle him."

Rolling her eyes with an indulgent smile, mother watched daughter all but swoon over her dorky, gorgeous boyfriend.

"Well, you certainly seem completely smitten. Or... more?"

"Mother, don't."

Astrid wasn't ready to examine her own feelings. She wasn't about to let someone else do it for her.

"Alright, alright!"

Glaring, Astrid busied herself by picking up her notepad from the side and began jotting out the plan for a new murder scene. Involving an axe, naturally, since the Night Fury had used one fairly recently, and her mothers constant quizzing about Hiccup only encouraged the thoughts. She'd ask Hiccup for help, but doubted he would get right into the gritty details in front of her mom.

"Astrid?"

Hiccup's voice called out to her from the kitchen a short while later, and she got up to investigate what he needed. Which turned out to be help, as he couldn't carry three plates through at once, and he'd finished cooking already.

"Oh, this looks amazing!"

"You sound surprised, I told you he could cook."

Hiccup blushed slightly as he sat, and Astrid saw him shift the cutlery to his non-dominant hand, telling that his dominant was paining him - Hiccup had never said as such, but Astrid had watched him enough to know. There were appreciative sounds as his food went down, Astrid still enamoured with his cooking even after a couple of months regularly eating it. He was just so much better than her, it was unfair and excellent all at once.

"Well, thank you for _finally _introducing me to your boyfriend Astrid" Astrid glared at her mom "and thank you Hi... Hiccup?" they both nodded "right. Thank you for lunch Hiccup."

"You're welcome Mrs Hofferson."

She tsked, but didn't bother correcting him as she left. Astrid waited to hear the door close and a car door open outside before she turned to apologise to Hiccup about it.

"Sorry. But now thats out of the way. And I really, _really _appreciate you doing that for me."

He offered Astrid a tight smile, but the tension was starting to leave his frame.

"Did she _really _ask you, to your face, while I was here, if I was a serial killer?"

"Unfortunately. She's crazy, ignore her. Now she's met you, hopefully she'll cluck about it less."

Once Hiccup had calmed down, Astrid eagerly took him to bed, intent on showing him _just _how much she appreciated that he'd endured something very new and scary for him. He was quite agreeable, and Astrid thrilled in the more recent shifts; Hiccup undressed fully, though it still took him a minute to psych himself up to take his bottoms off, and there were a couple of cute little hickies courtesy of Astrid on his neck and collarbone. A small step, really, but given the way his skin told the story of so much pain, Astrid was happy to be gentle and find what he could _enjoy, _because Astrid knew pain wasn't always a bad thing.

When they were done, Astrid watched Hiccup as he ran idle fingers over her skin, drawing shapes in the sweat on her stomach. He was always quite easy on the eye, but when he was relaxed and calm and contented next to her, he was so incredibly beautiful. Astrid reached for his face, sliding her fingers over his jaw that was just starting to grow raspy with stubble again. There was a small scar on his chin, barely noticeable and one of only two scars not covered by Hiccup's habitual long sleeves and trousers. His eyes rose from her body to her face, something in Astrid suddenly overflowing with _feelings._

"I love you."

* * *

Eret groaned, rubbing his head. It hurt. He'd not been _that _drunk, but he'd definitely forgotten to drink water before he collapsed into bed, and he was paying for it now...

There was someone in bed with him. No. Wait. _Two_ someones.

Eret wracked his brain, trying to remember how that had happened. Then he decided he didn't care just yet - he wanted to get out of there first. Sliding free, he was relieved to find both bedmates heavy sleepers, throwing a glance to the dark haired male and blonde female before he went in search of his clothes.

_I'm too old for a walk of shame, surely? _he thought to himself as he located bottoms and top, then shoes and socks and was relieved to find his phone, keys and walley all where he left them in his jacket. He slid out of the front door with a yawn, looked around and realised he luckily knew where he was. A glance at his dying phone said he wasn't going to be late for work, thankfully, so he scouted out one of the dying breed of phoneboxes, called a taxi and climbed into it with dreams of a shower and coffee at home.

He remembered going out to drink. It had been a long week, and there was a mounting workload building up around the Night Fury investigation. But with an active serial killer at work, they couldn't just not work _that _case. So they'd been stretched thin, and Eret desperately needed alcohol and a _break _from it all. He hadn't been looking to hook up, but wasn't against the idea and his brain conjured vague memories eventually of something along the lines of "I have a boyfriend, but he likes doing other guys and so do I" followed by some more blunt flirting, a little too much whiskey and overhearing somebody talking about the Night Fury in the bar that eventually chased him out of there.

Eret wracked his brain, trying desperately to remember their names.

"Hey, this is you."

He glanced out of the car window, realised he was in fact home.

"Oh. Thanks!"

He tipped the driver for leaving him in peace, then dragged his tired body into his house, downed a glass of water and left coffee cooling on the side while he headed for the bathroom. In the brighter light of his bathroom now it was proper daylight, Eret saw smudges of ink he first thought were bruises on his hip. Twisting around, he saw that, for whatever reason, there were two names written on his skin.

"Ruff and Snot. _Wow_ I hope that's not their real names. How much would their parents have to hate them?"

Eret mumbled to himself before jumping in the shower to scrub himself clean. Admittedly, after caffeine infused his system, Eret felt marginally more awake and a little less stressed. He had _needed _last night, to be a little tipsy and stupid and _human _again, doing things for the spontaneous fun of it.

He spent his morning off in the gym, showered and headed off to work feeling renewed, reinvigorated. His mood was not shared amongst his colleagues, who were working a triple murder-suicide. Eret took a look over the case with them - it wasn't really a tough one, but they had to do a cursory investigation to ensure it wasn't a quadruple murder with a staged suicide. Nothing jumped out at him that was off, so Eret got himself coffee and stepped into the Night Fury room. The third cork board was almost full, and that was _without_ a picture of the axe victims face, because they didn't really _have_ one anymore.

"Do you think Fury is escalating, or just finding messier weapons?"

Teeny appeared bearing warm pastry and the look of someone who hadn't gotten much sleep, glancing over at the varying levels of brutality. They'd become pretty desensitised to it, had to in order to eat in the same room really. Eret shoved the print-out Hofferson had brought them aside to make room for the pastry, shrugging at Teeny.

"No idea. Don't think we could tell until there's another one with more fists involved. Of course, I don't _want _a higher body count."

Eyes wandering over the table, Eret spotted the picture of Haddock amongst piles of disorganised paper. He looked at it, frowning, wondered if he was sat at home picking his next victim. The pattern was so unpredictable, they had no way to guess when someone else would be next.

"I mean, what weapons haven't they used yet? We've had rocks, a rounders bat, half a DIY store, then knife and boot and fist."

"The other half of a DIY store?"

Teeny snorted, shaking his head.

"Eret, are you suggesting we stake out B&Q?"

"Totally. I'm gonna go check on a few things. Won't be long."

As a distraction, Eret relayed his somewhat messy night to Teeny over a late lunch/dinner, earned himself laughs from his colleague.

"Only you could get into that by accident!"

"Yeah, well, I needed it. All these awful cases had me going crazy."

"That's cool. Just... funny. Heading up a murder investigation by day, walk of shame by night."

Eret rolled his eyes.

"It was morning!"

"Shh, stop ruining my witty jokes."

Eret threw his sandwich foil at Teeny. He deserved it.

-HTTYD-

**Poor Eret, he's ever so overworked.**

**(idk if they have them anywhere else, but here B&Q is a DIY store. You probably guessed, but hey)**


	13. Chapter 13

**12 yesterday, 13 today. Thirteen is lucky for some, I suppose...**

-HTTYD-

Hiccup was, if he was honest, left reeling a little when Astrid said three words he'd never expected to hear from anyone but his mother. She seemed to see his mild panic, pushing up onto her elbow and reaching for him with her free hand.

"Hey, hey. It's ok. You don't have to say anything. I didn't even mean for that to come out, but I was _not _trying to pressure you, alright?"

He nodded, still rather stunned. Hiccup was not the type of person anyone - least of all somebody so pure and _good _as Astrid. She was so patient, sweet, made Hiccup feel genuinely _cared _for in a way he had never expected when first following the suspicious blonde off the bus.

Hiccup still had no idea what it was she really saw in him, what she gained from their relationshp, but hearing such a deep, profound sentiment from her - and in such an organic, honest way - had him feeling guilty. How could she _love _him? She didn't even _know _him. Had no idea he stalked the streets at night, that he was the truth behind the stories of the Night Fury. Indirectly, _he _was the reason _she _kept getting dragged in by the police. This beautiful, loving woman deserved so much better than him, and Hiccup had been too selfish to realise it until it felt as though it was too late.

He'd tried to stay away from her before. Maybe next time he needed to be stronger about it.

Thoughts were interrupted by the beeping of his phone alarm, reminding him not to stay too late so he could get home to his mother. Astrid didn't even falter, ran her hand over his jaw, kissed his cheek.

"It's ok if you gotta go."

He nodded tightly, struggling with whether he should kiss her goodbye or not as Hiccup redressed quickly. He was going to shower at home, he decided. Anything to get away from Astrid where he could _think _more clearly. She seemed to notice his shifted mood, and Hiccup wondered how much guilt he should feel - she undoubtedly thought he was just freaking out about the 'love' thing. Which he was. But not for the reasons Astrid thought, he suspected.

She leaned up to kiss him goodbye, and Hiccup responded if only to avoid an awkward conversation before he left, dropping heavily into the front seat of his car and groaning. He'd never intended things to go so far. Had been sure Astrid's clever mind would have worked out what he was by then, or she'd have gotten sick of dating such a traumatised, awkward introvert.

But no, it had somehow stumbled along into something he could almost call _normal,_ save for the massive secrets he kept.

Slamming his head into the steering wheel, Hiccup just about leapt out of his skin when the horn honked in protest. Heart pounding in his chest from the spike of automatic panic, Hiccup took a few deep breaths, then started his car. His drive home felt off, and his mother could tell Hiccups mind was elsewhere that evening as she made sure not to distract him while he cooked.

"Is everything alright Hiccup?"

She asked gently as he pushed food around his plate, looked up into worried green eyes. Hiccup sighed, placing his fork down.

"Astrid... I met her mother today, which was _surreal _in itself. Especially when I was eavesdropping and her mother actually _asked_ her if I was a serial killer" his own mothers eyes went wide, but Hiccup pressed on "and then Astrid came in to see why I dropped something. I let her think it was my hand. Anyway, after her mother left, we..." he trailed off, then shook his head and continued on "Astrid told me she loves me."

Valka froze with fork halfway to her mouth, lowering it a minute later with already wide eyes almost comically large.

"Oh. I... that sounds like a busy afternoon."

Hiccup nodded, taking a deep sigh.

"Yeah. I didn't really answer, and Astrid said she wasn't pressuring me and I didn't have to say anything back. Then my alarm to come home went off, and she said I could go... how can she love me? She doesn't _know _me."

"Oh, son" she placed her hand over his, squeezed; he could see the burn scars that covered the back like pale, shiny freckles "she loves the man she thinks you are."

"But that's not me. Not all of me, anyway. Even if I... _stopped, _which I don't think I _can, _I'd still be... the Night Fury. It doesn't help that Astrid is kinda obsessed with the Night Fury, really. It's tough hearing her ask all these deep, psychological questions about _their _motivations, and I can't answer any of them even though I know all the answers."

They both knew _telling_ Astrid wasn't an option; her fascination with serial killers was in the theory, in the fascination with human darkness. It wasn't a _support _for what he did. Telling her... he might as well have turned himself in and cut out the middleman.

"I'd like to meet her."

"Excuse me?"

Patting his hand, his mother sat back and lifted her drink for a sip.

"I'd like to meet her, before you decide... whatever it is you're going to do."

He felt a little offset by the implication his mother made, as though Hiccup would _kill_ Astrid to keep his secret.

Or _would _he?

No. Hiccup was just going to break up with her, spout something about how he wasn't fit for a relationship. Which really, he thought, was true. She'd be hurt, he supposed, since she appeared to have developed real, deep feelings for him. But she'd move on.

His hand raised to brush fingers over his throat, where he knew marks of her teeth lingered on his skin.

"You really want to meet her?"

"I do. I'd like to know why you smile when you talk about her."

Hiccup ducked his head, shrugged awkwardly before buying himself time with a swallow of his drink.

"Alright. I guess I'll invite her over."

It would slow his plans to break them off. Possibly even make things harder when he did something so... _serious._ Astrid had clearly worked out some of his life story from the scars on his body - scars she knew well, which ones ached and he didn't like being touched, and which ones were numb but left the surrounding healthy skin sensitive.

"And if you then decide to break up with her, you could always tell her I don't like her."

Hiccup snorted into his drink. Given how much of a 'mommas boy' Astrid obviously pegged him as, that probably wouldn't be the _worst _excuse. Better than "because I'm a serial killer" anyway...

* * *

Sitting in Hiccup's car was a rare occurrence in itself, he'd picked her up from the police station once, and work a handful of times but they'd always been heading to her place. Now Hiccup was taking her to _his _home, to meet his mother.

Since Astrid thought she'd scared him off with the 'I love you' slip, and Hiccup had spent a day or two not talking to her at all, the fact he'd surprised her with an invite to his _home, _to meet _his mom... _left Astrid quite stunned, really.

The building itself was fairly nondescript - a bungalow, though Hiccup mentioned it had a cellar once in passing. The front step had a wheelchair ramp, and there were railings either side of it that bore marks in the metal coating to suggest a lot of use. She could see the fencing of a back garden behind it, and a few wild weeds growing in the front. Hiccup led her to the front door, let them in with a key that he hung on a hook as soon as he'd locked the door behind them. Astrid supposed she couldn't fault him for wanting to feel safe.

"Mom?"

"Through here son."

Astrid followed with some trepidation; she'd seen only drawings of Valka, and could only assume what she might see in the woman that showed the same painful past Hiccup had. She rounded a doorway in time to see Hiccup helping her stand, supporting her until she found her feet and leant on a walking stick. The furniture was all widely spaced - wheelchair space, Astrid thought. Sure enough, there were two folded up and leant against the wall, one with deep green swirls of paint on the fabric, the other a mix of dusky blues and oranges.

Hiccup's mother was _tall, _she realised. A little taller than Hiccup, maybe, though she seemed unable to stand up straight for very long before she leant more heavily on the stick in hand. She kissed Hiccup's hair, murmured what sounded like "thank you son" to him before they both turned to Astrid. Her hair was greying, but there was plenty enough to see she was where some of Hiccup's reddish-brown came from, as were the bright green eyes and freckled cheeks.

"Mom, this is Astrid. Astrid, meet my mother, Valka."

Valka kept her distance and moved slowly, a visible limp to her step as she edged closer to Astrid. They shook hands, an oddly formal feeling and mixed with the sensation of scarred skin pressed against her own softer palm. Astrid adamantly refused to look, to _stare, _but caught the pattern of faded, circular scars on the back of Valka's hand as she withdrew it.

"It's nice to finally meet you. Hiccup talks about you a lot."

"All good, I hope!"

"Like I'd ever have a bad word to say about you mom."

Hiccup hugged his mother gently around the waist, both smiling; they were obviously close. Astrid got the feeling she wouldn't be in Hiccup's life much longer if his mother didn't like her. Normally, she'd consider that more of a red flag, but Hiccup was responsible for his mother as her full time carer, and Astrid knew he struggled with guilt for leaving her sometimes.

They even dressed the same, dark bottoms and oversized jumpers - hers was a dark yellow though, Hiccup's dark green. Maybe Valka liked the sunshine more.

"Have you taken your meds, or have you not eaten yet?"

"Not yet, I wasn't feeling too well."

"Alright, I'll get your stomach pills, then you can eat when they kick in?"

Valka threw Astrid furtive glances, but Astrid had been warned on the way over by Hiccup that Valka took a lot of medication to manage her various issues and conditions, and Astrid turned to leave them to talk, taking in her surroundings more. The art in Hiccup clearly ran through his blood - she'd seen enough of his work to know the vibrant painting in colourful acrylics showing sunrises and nature didn't match the charcoal-smudge dragons, or the perfectly detailed human faces. Though there were dragons in Valka's hand too, small and cute and big and powerful, while Hiccup favoured slight and sleek or intricately scaled.

"Can I use your bathroom?"

Hiccup looked up from where he was sorting through a box, one that made that distinctive blister-pack pill-box sound.

"Uh, sure. Down there, on your right. Careful not to bang your elbow on the support bar."

There was more evidence of their home adapted for disability in the bathroom - sturdy support rails next to the toilet, and in the shower alongside what must be a shower chair, scuff marks on the floor from wheelchair wheels. Still the walls were painted brightly, with the shapes of sea creatures all around.

Astrid still managed to bang her elbow on the support bar.

Rubbing it with a grimace, she stepped back out and headed through to where Hiccup was perched on a seat in the kitchen, waiting for her.

"I like your bathroom."

"Oh. Thanks. Mom painted most of it, I just did the blue background and left her to it. Did you bang your arm?"

"How could you tell?"

"I heard you swear at it."

Definitely _caught, _Astrid gave him her best innocent expression until Hiccup chuckled. He popped a painkiller himself before he started on making food, clearly more at ease within his own kitchen, moved to find things as though he simply envisioned them there seconds before opening a drawer or cupboard. Astrid felt less slighted by all his comments on her terrible culinary skills when he also banished his mother with a laugh, insisting she was nothing but a hazard in the kitchen and he barely trusted her to reheat leftovers he'd made.

"Oh, you!"

"In my defence mom, you've blown two microwaves."

"The first one was not my fault! You left the spoon in the tray, I didn't see it."

"And the second?"

Astrid watched them with a laugh on her lips as they bantered, clearly a good natured ribbing they engaged in from time to time together. The kitchen was the least decorated room in the house that she'd seen so far, the walls between the tiles painted a powder blue and nothing added, though it was clearly lived in, evidenced by worn floors and the odd scorch mark on the walls.

"Sit down properly mom, almost done."

He got more pills and water and placed them next to Valka's place setting. They clearly didn't expect guests often - Astrid had never seen the kind of grip on their cutlery before, but after watching Hiccup struggle with his hands at times, Astrid supposed special cutlery wasn't unreasonable.

Dinner was uneventful and tasty, conversation light until they were done. Valka took her medication under her sons watchful eye, then excused herself for a nap and Hiccup followed with a water bottle in hand for her. He came back to clean up after dinner, shooed Astrid away when she offered to help.

"I have a system, it's fine."

She was invited to stay the night, though Hiccup told her it wasn't guaranteed he'd spend the whole night next to her. Which was fair. As was his desire not to do anything sexual - he'd never even brought a girl home before Astrid, she wasn't surprised he was too afraid of his mother overhearing them. Astrid wasn't exactly quiet...

But falling asleep next to Hiccup was novel and wonderful, especially when it involved cuddling. His bedroom was very _him, _dragons and doodles and a sort of organised chaos - everything had its place, but damned if Astrid could work out the system without a map and a few hours to think about it. His bed was _so _comfortable. Astrid was going to miss it, she decided, when she went back home.

Astrid woke to an empty bed and an urgent bladder, cursing two teas and a hot chocolate before bed. Hiccup making things was just so very hard to say no to...

Rubbing her eyes, she padded out to the hallway, locating the bathroom in time and relieving herself. When she came back out, she meandered in search of Hiccup, wanting cuddles again and hoping he'd be open to the idea. He wasn't in the living room, nor the kitchen. She'd crossed off bathroom and bedroom. Not about to go seeking out his mothers bedroom, Astrid was about to give up and ask later when she caught sight of shadowy light streaming from the gap of an ajar door she'd not seen open yet.

She headed closer, heard the sounds of footsteps and Hiccup humming. Astrid slipped through the door, almost fell down the staircase she found for her troubles. The steps were sturdy, barely made a sound under her feet as Astrid moved down, looking around for her missing boyfriend. Her yawn made him stop dead, turning around with what Astrid could only describe as _panic_ in his face.

"Astrid! You... what are you doing down here? You should be asleep!"

He was coming closer quite fast. Astrid rubbed her face, shrugged.

"Missed you."

Just as he was about to chase her up the stairs again, she glanced over his shoulder in a vague curiousity for what he'd been doing down there.

And realised what she wasn't supposed to see.

Her eyes ran along the wall, taking in sketch after sketch after sketch. Alleyways and abandoned car parks, mostly, but the top one? The very first one? Astrid recognised Hiccup's own kitchen. She saw axe and hammer and knife, she saw battered bodies and a deep red ink splashed across them all, and even stranger things like a discarded jumper or a broken doll.

And every single one was marked with a larger drawing of the brand she'd seen on the victims, on photos she'd found scattered across the internet. When her eyes finally fell upon Hiccup again, she barely recognised the man looking back at her.

"You're... you're the Night Fury."

-HTTYD-

**The end of this chapter was picked out before I reached the point of needing a hiatus. Just so you know I didn't plot it to be a very long wait, although it may end up being a long wait all the same. We'll see, I guess.  
**


	14. Chapter 14

**Still on hiatus, no idea when I'll be back but I am writing on occasion again and I know this was a much awaited chapter.  
**

**Astrid bleeds in this chapter. **

-HTTYD-

He didn't answer. He didn't have to. Basic survival instinct had Astrid scrambling backwards, away from the _murderer_ in front of her. He lunged, slamming a hand forcefully against her mouth when she made to scream or shout, she didn't know, and dragging her down the final few steps with a strength Astrid hadn't known he had.

"You wake my mother, and you _will _regret it."

His arm was tight around her upper body, but Astrid was no small, delicate girl and managed to break free, more than ready to fight for her life if she had to. Hiccup threw himself at her in a full body tackle, the noise of his prosthetic hitting the ground not even seeming to affect him as he pinned her down. Astrid flung her body around, managed to dislodge him and roll onto her back.

She didn't have chance to stand before he was kneeling over her, and there was the cold threat of metal against her throat, the keen edge of a blade and the wild eyes of the terror that stalked the streets of their city.

"Give me a reason. I won't hesitate."

He didn't even _sound _like Hiccup anymore, his voice a roughened growl that she realised had been several peoples final sounds before he took their life. Astrid had seen crime scene photos - online and in interrogations, when they tried to shake her into confessing. She knew well what Hiccup was capable of, the quiet and mild-mannered boy she'd been coaching through the early stages of relationships spending his days in her bed and his nights in blood.

"Hiccup? I heard banging, did you fall son?"

He pressed a finger to his lips, and Astrid barely dared breathe as he called back up the stairs.

"No mom, I dropped a box. Go back to bed."

Did Valka know? Know what her son was, what he did?

He waited until the sound of footsteps headed away from the door at the top of the stairs, the distinctive three-tap of someone with a walking stick. Every sound seemed deafeningly loud to her, her body surging with adrenaline as she prepared to do whatever it took not to die there in Hiccup's cellar, surrounded by evidence of all those he'd killed before her.

"Who was your first?"

Hiccup blinked; for a second the feral look in his eyes faltered before he pressed the blade tighter to her neck.

"Excuse me?"

"You're gonna kill me. At least satisfy my curiousity about the Night Fury?"

"My stepfather. I was fifteen, and he was beating my mother. I grabbed a knife. _This _knife" he pressed harder and Astrid knew the slight wetness on her throat was blood, though adrenaline numbed the pain "and I stabbed him in the neck. Bastard bled like a stuck pig. We buried him in the garden and cleaned the kitchen, told people he'd run away cus he was tired of taking care of us. Nobody doubted the word of a poor little one legged boy and his sickly mother. She only broke her wrist in the car crash. All her health problems are because of _him, _and the only regret I have about killing him is that he didn't suffer long enough."

She'd seen what his stepfather had done to _him, _physically. Astrid could only imagine the psychological damage done to Hiccup having to watch his mother suffer the abuse too - and apparently got it _worse, _because she needed Hiccup to care for her rather than the other way around.

"Why the others? You got away with it once."

"Because it wasn't enough. When I was seventeen, I needed _more. _I don't know what it was, I just went out walking. Happened across someone being attacked. Beat the guys brain in with a rock I found. He dropped his cigarettes. I burned him with them to see what it was like from the other side. And there was this moment... I felt so light. Free. _Strong. _I couldn't protect my mother, but I can try and save others. Unfortunately, I can't save you."

He raised the knife, a little of her blood already there on the edge of the blade. With how he'd pinned her, Astrid had very little hope of escape, and no _time _if whatever she tried failed.

So she punched him in the groin. He gasped, doubling over and his grip loosened enough. Astrid took her shot and shoved him over, lunging for his knife and managing to pull it from his hand. He growled as she pinned him, blade pressed to _his_ throat now and his eyes still dark, angry.

"I don't need _saving. _I need answers. Don't think I won't leave your body here for your mother to find. She'd never get you up those stairs by herself now, would she?"

"You're playing a dangerous game here Astrid Hofferson."

"So are you. You followed me on purpose that day, didn't you?"

"Yep. Had to be sure what you knew. Nothing, as it turned out."

Astrid thought about something else, one of those things that both him and her written killer had in common.

"Why do you brand them?"

"Release. And a signature. I don't want people in their life getting the blame, after all."

"Or taking the credit?"

It was a very surreal conversation to be having in her pyjamas, Astrid noted somewhere in the back of her mind.

"If that's what you wanna think, sure."

He wasn't surrendering; she could feel the corded tension in his body, knew Hiccup was waiting for the moment he could turn the tables and she wouldn't get the time to fight back again. So she thought, quick and angry and a little bit terrified.

She wondered if it should be quite so _thrilling._

"Tell me more."

"Why? Kill me. At least then you have nobody to turn in."

"Your mother could go down for aiding you. She gave you an alibi at least once."

He bared his teeth; his mother was a touchy subject, obviously.

"You leave her alone!"

It was the strength he'd needed; Astrid didn't blink before she was on her back, the sting of her skin coming apart under the blade and her final sight his face, twisted in anger and almost unrecognisable. She closed her eyes, refusing to look at him.

His hand stilled. His breathing was slow, calm, as though none of it affected him at all. Astrid's heart was pounding so furiously she thought it would come out of her chest and save him the bother.

"What are you waiting for? Get it over with."

"I just realised I forgot to tell you something. Don't move. I _will _come after you. If you manage to escape, I _swear_ your mother is my next victim."

Astrid didn't move. Barely dared breathe. She absolutely believed that was no idle threat, not with the animal she saw in him. Hiccup came back, steps even and no sign of the limp he suffered sometimes.

"Roll over."

"No."

He rolled his eyes as though she were a mild annoyance, knelt down and forced her onto her front. Astrid tensed - Hiccup had never raised a hand to her before, but she had far too much idea of what _this _Hiccup was capable of. He yanked her hands behind her, secured her wrists with a cable tie and pulled her harshly to her feet.

"Notice anything odd about these pictures?"

"You mean besides the dead bodies?"

She looked, noticing that each of them had an item that was out of place, that she was sure hadn't been mentioned to her in the course of questioning or her own research. There was a blood soaked jumper, a cracked snowglobe, a broken doll, a crushed flower...

"What am I meant to be seeing here?"

"See this? That one was for you."

Hiccup tapped the one with a bloodied jumper on the ground.

"Me?"

"I wore a wool jumper, just for you, when you wanted to know how to get blood out of wool."

Astrid's mouth fell open. He'd taken _hours _to answer her that night, and there had been a fresh Fury kill the next morning. He'd _killed _someone. For her.

"Who were they?"

"Oh, some lowlife who attacked his boyfriend, but the cops didn't care about a _gay _couple. I don't know why the cops are working so hard to find me. I'm doing their job. _Better._ I never kill anyone who doesn't deserve it."

"You're about to kill me. All I did wrong was find out your dirty little secret."

Hiccup turned her to face him, their height difference fairly small but it felt as though he towered over her right now. He gripped her jaw hard enough to hurt, ran the very tip of the knife down her neck.

"Still think you love me?"

Until he said it, Astrid hadn't even thought of the fact she'd told this man she loved him not even a week ago. But that had been the quiet, unassuming man who cooked her food and listened to her babble on about her book. Was _any _of that the real him? Had their entire relationship been a lie?

Then she thought of only hours ago, of his tending to his mother, of cooking dinner with practiced hands and scattered jokes. She'd seen him put his heart into drawings, had seen the naked vulnerability in his face the first time she took him to bed.

She loved _that _Hiccup. But did she love _this _Hiccup? The one who could hold her captive, who held her down and pressed a blade against her racing pulse?

Hel, Astrid had _written _this Hiccup. There were an almost dizzying number of similarities between his real story and her fictional one, even more so since he'd began 'helping', and Astrid got the feeling his 'friend in Forensics' was a reference to when he donned a helmet and went out prowling for victims.

"Yes. You saved Heather. You didn't have to."

He'd quizzed her on that, she realised. Dug for answers in a show of concern when really, he wanted to know how much Heather had told the police. But still, he could have killed her or even threatened her to silence. He hadn't. He'd let her go.

There were no different sides to Hiccup. There was only... _Hiccup. _

He seemed surprised by her answer.

"Are you expecting that to save you?"

"No. I don't think I need saving. I don't think you have it in you to kill me."

Oh, she'd definitely felt he _could_ a few minutes ago, but he was calmer now, his voice more even despite his rough hands. She'd be bruised if she made it to morning.

"You think so?"

"Yeah. Like you said, you kill people who deserve it. You can threaten and try to scare me all you want, but you won't do it, and you don't need to. I won't tell anybody."

"And why should I believe you?"

Astrid lifted her eyes from the ground to his eyes.

"Because of the two of us, I'm the one who hasn't lied."

He just stared at her for a few minutes, blade still at her throat. Then he turned her around, cut the tie off her wrists. Astrid raised her hand to her neck, found the nick from the knife was surprisingly small and already drying.

"Then go. But I wasn't kidding about your mother."

Astrid turned around, shaking her head as she reached for the collar of his jumper.

"Who said I was going anywhere?"

She heard the clatter of the knife hitting the ground when she dragged him down and kissed him, felt his hands settle on her shoulders before pushing her away.

"What are you doing?"

Astrid winked, smile on her face.

"Told you before. I like serial killers."

-HTTYD-

**Well, I never said Astrid was going to be the healthy one.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Ah, I do love the love for Serialcup thirst.**

-HTTYD-

After the surreal events that led up to it, Hiccup's brain took a while to cotton on to Astrid kissing him. Well, kissing was a strong word for the rough way her mouth dominated his, following her actually uttering the words "I like serial killers" _after_ Hiccup had held his knife to her throat.

And all this time, he'd thought Astrid was the _normal _one.

His body attempted to respond as it often did, but the dull throb of pain quickly put brakes on that as he pushed Astrid off again. She growled, cheeks flushed and blood drying on her neck where the blade had broken skin.

"What now?"

"You punched me in the crotch."

"You _were_ holding a knife on me, in fairness."

Hiccup tried not to roll his eyes; she wasn't _wrong._

"Yes, but what I mean is it hurts trying to... you know."

Astrid sighed, shoulders slumping.

"Typical, I've never wanted to jump you more and I broke it."

He could only stare at her, incredulous as Astrid appeared genuinely _disappointed _she couldn't get sex from him minutes after finding out he was a rather prolific serial murderer.

"We should... talk, anyway."

"If we must. Will you tell me more about your kills?"

There was a new fervor in Astrid's eyes, visibly wanting for those gory details he'd shared only with his mother and his sketchbook. Hiccup was still wary; the more he told her, the more she knew to turn him in, though as she turned wide eyes to the wall of drawings Hiccup saw her bite her lip, cheeks flushed as she shifted from side to side.

"Maybe."

With the rush of the hunt starting to fade now he wasn't geared to kill Astrid to silence her, his knee was reminding him it had taken a fair bit of abuse in the last few minutes. Hiccup was still very aware of where his knife was, heart not quite calmed.

"Seriously, I'm dying to know everything. You've been listening to me geek out over... _you_ for months now. Spill!"

"Astrid, that's not... we should..."

She let out a deep breath, looking around.

"Honestly, I won't turn you in. I... ok, I don't _understand, _but I get why you do it, how it started, why you choose who you choose."

Hiccup leant down to pick up his knife, then moved over to his chair to take the weight off his leg. Astrid watched him, then looked around before shrugging and sitting cross legged on the floor.

"You can't just have found this out and be _ok _with it. That's not how people work."

Astrid cocked her head, thinking face on.

"Probably not, but I'm not people. I'm Astrid, and I want to know. You've been hiding _everything _from me for months, and I waited. You held a knife to my throat and I didn't run. You wanna talk? Talk."

Hiccup sighed, leaning back in his chair and tapping the handle of his knife against his knee.

"What do you want to know?"

"Everything! What is it like? How do you feel when you do it? Why the brand? Is it a compulsion or a choice?"

Astrid was leaning forward from her perch on the floor, and Hiccup couldn't take his eyes off the marks on her neck. He mentally inventoried what he had down there, and remembered skin-friendly wipes he used for cleaning ink and paint splatters off his hands.

"Here, clean... that up."

She frowned, confused before realising what he meant and carefully cleansed the blood from small knife nicks on her neck. One was deeper than the other, as one had been a threat and the other had been Hiccup preparing to silence her permanently.

Astrid seemed so very sure that Hiccup _couldn't _have done it, and while Hiccup wasn't about to argue with her when she seemed to be open to not reporting that she knew who the Night Fury was, he knew he was going to have to make peace with the fact some time that just then, with the safety of his mother on the line... _he could have._

She arched her neck slightly, stretching the skin.

"Gone?"

"Yeah."

The blood was, anyway. There were still visible cuts there that would need explaining. He needed to clean her blood off his knife, and the drops on the floor. His knee twinged again, sore and stiff as it often was when his body ignored its pain for the sake of the hunt.

"Right. So, now thats dealt with, are you gonna answer my questions?"

"Are you gonna write what I say in your books?"

Astrid's mouth quirked up in a small pout as she pondered, then shrugged.

"Nothing dead obvious, but there's a lot of information about the Night Fury knocking about on the internet, and I've been questioned by the cops thinking I'm... _you _a bunch of times. They've let things slip that I shouldn't know. You saw the picture room. There's a lot of plausible deniability, especially when everyone thinks you are way too meek and nerdy and disabled to possibly be the serial killer on the loose."

"Except Eret. I'm pretty sure he's certain it's one of us."

"Yeah... we'll figure out what to do with him later."

Hiccup blinked.

"_We?_"

Astrid nodded.

"Well, yeah. I know now, so I'm kinda... involved? I mean, if I walk out of here and don't turn you in, I basically become guilty of aiding and abeting or whatever the next time you kill someone, because I knew and didn't do anything to stop you. Just like your mom. Unless I could prove I felt threatened, but... I punched a cop and then I got out of here. I don't think I could sell being scared of you."

His head was spinning a little. Astrid seemed far too candid, comfortable. For a second, he wondered who should really be afraid of who.

"Riiiight. Thanks. I think."

Astrid shuffled a little closer, looking up at him with still-feverish interest.

"Come on!"

Hiccup rubbed a hand over his face, sighed.

"Alright. I feel... angry, during. And calmer after. I guess my fathers ring is a choice, but the branding is when I feel calmest and I don't think I could stop myself if I wanted to. As for what its like? Messy."

He half expected her to suddenly realise they were talking real, actual murder, but Astrid showed absolutely no hint of distress, only eagerness for _more._

"Are you aware of it? How do you choose them? I guess its random sometimes otherwise you wouldn't have found Heather... did you _know _it was her?"

Hiccup nodded.

"Yeah. Bit of a surprise. I was just out... hunting, I guess. Sometimes I choose specific people. Other times I just go out and hope to run in to someone doing something they shouldn't be. That was how I found my first. Well, after my stepfather. Heather was just in the wrong place at the right time."

"How do you choose them?"

"Police records, mostly. Lots of people who intimidate or shame their victims into silence, but anything up to then is recorded. I have a list. When I pick someone, I start watching them... well, from my laptop. I learn their routine, figure out when they'll be out at night."

Astrid was still looking utterly riveted. Hiccup hadn't realised it would be quite so _cathartic_ to just talk about it so freely.

"Police records? Do you have an inside man?"

"No, just... slightly illegal computer skills. Confession, I hacked you the first day we met."

Her eyes widened, then narrowed in suspicion.

"You did _what_ now?"

"Just the usual basic info. I mostly wanted to be sure you hadn't intentionally lured me in for a police officer relative or something. Or that you weren't a cop yourself."

Astrid still looked quite unhappy, but Hiccup no longer worried she was going to get up and hit him at least.

"Awfully suspect behaviour for someone who followed _me _first."

Hiccup shrugged.

"Hey, I opted not to follow you home and kill you. You got off better than a lot of other people I have followed around."

Astrid rolled her eyes, humming to herself before she looked back at him, even more suspicious than before.

"That first date we had, you were wearing a ring around your neck that I have never seen you wear since. Was that... was I on your list that day?"

"Not... specifically. I was just prepared for the possibility that I let something slip. I am very out of practice at human contact, except for my mom who _knows _what I do. I never wore it again after that day to meet you."

"Why?"

He sighed, tapped his fingers against the arm of his chair.

"Because I found you easier to be around than I thought I would, and I wasn't so worried I'd accidentally tell you something I shouldn't have."

Astrid had more questions, more curiousity to assauge, and while he knew it would be foolish to instantly assume he wasn't putting himself at risk somewhat by sharing, Hiccup did tentatively hope that his secrets were safe with her. A little. He didn't discount that silence by force might become necessary in the future _just _yet.

* * *

Waking up to the very unwelcome news of a fresh Fury kill, Eret sighed down the phone at an equally half-asleep Teeny, and agreed he'd be there within half an hour. Pouring coffee into his carry cup, he grabbed a protein bar and stomped down to his car in as bad a mood as anyone would be with their job getting harder and no sleep, probably.

"Do we know who the victim is?"

"Yeah. Worst part is he lives less than five minutes walk away. The Night Fury is getting braver, closer to peoples homes."

Eret made sure nobody was too close, then lifted the sheet covering the victim. The mess on the floor was a good enough hint, but he was glad not to have had a substantial breakfast when he saw the state of the victim.

"What did this, I wonder?"

"Until we clean him up a bit, hard to say. Plenty of force though, found two of his teeth over there."

"Lovely. So, we run a record for them yet?"

Given what they knew of the killers MO, and the type of victim they liked, it was standard practice by then.

"Still waiting on hearing back, it's early. Got guys knocking on doors asking if anyone heard anything... I struggle to imagine _nobody _heard anything this close to a street."

Eret agreed, but he also wouldn't be surprised if nobody spoke up. Quite a few people sided with the Night Fury; vigilante justice was a popular fantasy, undoubtedly. He'd certainly entertained a thought or two when faced with particularly horrid perps... but that didn't make what was happening _right. _And it certainly didn't excuse the brutality of the Night Fury taking out a bad childhood on strangers.

"Oh, here we go. Oh, a new one for the Night Fury, they usually prefer domestic abusers and rapists."

"What's this guy?"

"Paedophile, done time for it twice already. Maybe they're changing it up to keep us guessing."

Sighing, Eret quashed that flicker of agreement; there was an innate hatred for anybody who hurt a child within any half-decent person, he knew. A child peered around the corner of an alleyway, soon yanked away by (presumably) a parent before they saw anything but a few splatters and a hastily-erected forensics tent.

"What's he doing living on a street with _kids?"_

"Guess he slipped through the cracks... damn. We better talk to the locals, cover our asses. If he was alone with a kid..."

Eret winced.

"Yeah. Go, I got this."

Left waiting for the rest of the forensics team to come work the scene, Eret couldn't ignore that civilian revenge against this particular breed of scumbag was common enough that, without the branding and brutality, there wouldn't have been a way to prove it was a Fury kill. But there on the forearm, the unique mark stood out despite the rest of the injuries.

Pinning the new pictures to the fourth corkboard, Eret debated asking his superiors to let him have Haddock and Hofferson tailed versus just... sitting on Haddock himself. Hofferson was a more viable suspect, but there was just _something _about Haddock that Eret could not shake.

He knocked off early since he'd started early and went home to sleep, waking as the sky began to grow dark and hurrying his way through a functional meal before he began the drive over. The street itself wasn't all that busy, and Eret's car would stand out to anyone familiar with the few neighbours they had. Stilll, he drove a dark green car and with the lights off, Eret figured he wouldn't stand out too much.

Was it too soon? The Fury had no true pattern in timing, but it had only been a day. He just felt like he had to do _something._

His phone vibrated, and Eret reluctantly took his eyes off the house he was watching to see a message from Teeny on the screen.

_"Ten quid says you're sat outside Haddock's house."_

**"Eat shit Teeny."**

Eret answered, not in the mood for his colleagues snark and doubt. He was off the clock. It was up to Eret what he did with his free time.

His heart tried to escape through his chest when knuckles rapped on the window, and he looked round with trepidation to see Haddock and Hofferson stood at the side of his car. Hofferson gestured for him to get out, and while Eret didn't think it wise, he did so. He hadn't even heard them leaving the house, let alone seen them.

"Bit cold out, we brought you a drink."

Haddock actually held out a mug, plain black and full of tea. Well, it could have been straight poison, but it didn't smell like coffee or cocoa.

"I'm fine, thanks."

"You sure? It's not poisoned, promise."

Lit only by one flickering street light a fair distance away and the moon and stars above, Henry 'Hiccup' Haddock certainly didn't cut a threatening figure in his oversized jumper and patterned pyjama bottoms. His girlfriend, dressed in a slightly baggy t-shirt and knee-length shorts, probably didn't appear like a threat to a stranger. Of course, Eret knew better after what she did to his ex-colleague.

And something about the two of them standing there, offering him tea like they were old friends rather than them catching him trying to put Haddock under surveillance... it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. If he took the drink and it _was _poisoned, Eret wouldn't have been able to blame anyone but himself - he put himself there, and got caught. Stake-outs were never his strong suit, but nobody else believed as he did in this case.

"Seriously, the tea is fine. Next time you want to keep an eye on us, just knock the damn door. Not sure where you think we'd be going, I have plans for him and they all involve staying indoors all night."

"Astrid!"

The look she gave her boyfriend was positively _obscene, _and it definitely made said boyfriend a little uncomfortable. Eret was uncomfortable just being in the vicinity of such blatant lust and obvious insinuations. He took the cup just so he had something else to focus on.

"Well, enjoy your night Officer. Come on babe, don't want you catching a cold."

As though it were an ordinary night, they turned and walked back to the house holding hands like an ordinary couple. Haddock had a limp, he knew from others telling him, and the Night Fury _didn't _despite earlier assumptions. It seemed far-fetched to consider someone who walked with the aid of a prosthetic possibly _faking _a limp if they could walk without one...

but then, Eret would have sounded pretty damn far-fetched if he told any of his colleagues that Astrid Hofferson, possible girlfriend of a Night Fury suspect or one herself, turned around and winked at him before they vanished back indoors and left him with a cup of tea and more questions than answers.

-HTTYD-

**Hiccup made the tea, it's fine. I wonder if Astrid giving Eret yak nog would have counted as a murder attempt...**


	16. Chapter 16

**In the context of the song, Ghostbusters, would you say Serialcup is the "something weird in your neighbourhood", or who you were gonna call?**

**Technically, this chapter takes place between the two parts of last chapter, but it covers questions people had about last chapter so lets roll.**

-HTTYD-

Blue-green eyes watched Astrid leave the room, waiting until they heard her all the way to the bathroom, door closing behind her before they spoke. It was strange having someone else in the house again, and old habits like keeping track of their footsteps died hard.

"I don't like this."

Even after they were alone, Valka shifted closer, lowered her voice.

"I know. And if it's too much for you, I won't bring her over here anymore."

He'd had to explain the cuts on Astrid's neck, and the whole discovery thing had tumbled out. His mother was _not _happy about it.

"I'm not sure she's... completely stable."

"Probably not, but let's be fair mom. When was someone completely sane and stable ever going to fall in love with _me?_"

He saw how she wanted to argue, but his mother was all too aware what her son was, and there was no real argument to be made.

"She could turn you in."

"I know. I'm not blind to the risks, but she caught me downstairs, so she knows. And if I killed her, I'd be the first suspect and the cops would be all over me. Even if she just vanished, it would have raised a lot of questions."

He hadn't thought that far ahead earlier, which was remiss of him. Astrid seemed to have a unique effect on him, reducing his logical reasoning at times. They heard the toilet flush and fell quiet again, but he saw the wariness in his mothers expression when Astrid returned.

If it came to a choice between his mother and Astrid? He'd choose his mother. But if he could have both people in his life without his secret being at risk? Well, that wasn't going to be the worst thing.

His phone beeped, making Hiccup check the time as he saw the low battery.

"Time for your morning meds. Are you eating or napping first?"

"Eating."

Hiccup nodded, helping her stand before limping to the kitchen to make breakfast. He'd jarred his leg the night before. It was early still, dawn barely breaking but they didn't exactly keep to the standard circadian rhythm modern society dictated.

"You have work today Astrid?"

"No, but I am behind on writing so I'll probably head off once I drink this."

She held up her coffee.

"If you wait until mom goes to lie down, I can drive you home."

Astrid nodded, returning to her caffeine and toast. Hiccup wondered if it should feel weirder that Astrid knew he was a murderer than it did that there was a third person in the kitchen. It had been just the two of them in there ever since they dragged his stepfathers body out back to bury it.

"Get some rest mom."

"I'll try."

Making sure she was set up for morning naptime, Hiccup jokingly tucked her in to bed and headed out to where Astrid was waiting. His knee was still unhappy with him after last nights shenanigans, but it had been worse and Hiccup knew he could take pain relief when he got back from dropping his girlfriend home.

He wasn't surprised by the fact Astrid confronted him as soon as they were in the car, safe from prying ears and Valka's overhearing.

"Your mom isn't happy you told me, huh?"

"Not really. When only she knew, she knew I was safe so long as I didn't get caught. Now there's this... unknown entity, a threat to our safety."

Astrid reached toward him, but stilled before she actually touched him, lest he jump while his hands were on the wheel of a moving car.

"I'm not a threat. At least, not to your secret. Your neck is another matter."

Quite aware of Astrid's taste for biting him, Hiccup laughed to himself.

"Still, it's a leap of faith here that I'm taking by letting you go. You know enough to understand that faith isn't something me and my mom have much of in anyone but each other."

Astrid nodded quietly, picking her bag up from by her feet as she saw her street coming in to view.

"I know. Are you coming up?"

"I would, but you're meant to be going to get some work done."

She crossed her arms, mock-pouting.

"Spoilsport. Fiiiiine, I'll go work on my murder books."

Hiccup drummed his fingers against the steering wheel, looking her over.

"I doubt you'd listen if I said don't put anything you know about me in there. So instead I'll ask that if you do, try not to be _too_ obvious."

Astrid nodded again, chewing her lower lip for a second.

"I'll be careful, I don't want you to get caught. Text me if you go for a nap, cus I might wanna call you later but I don't want to wake you. I know you didn't get much sleep last night."

"I will. Hope you get some work done."

She leant over and kissed him, stroking his cheek gently and smiling softly at him. From the corner of his eye, he could see the lines on her neck where his knife had broken skin.

"I love you."

Astrid got out of the car before Hiccup had to figure out how to answer that, staring after her as she turned, waved and headed off to where she lived. Hiccup leant against the back of his seat, cheeks puffing as he exhaled heavily.

Well, he'd let her out. If Astrid had been putting on an act ever since he removed her wrist ties, he was in serious trouble. Of course, Hiccup intended to make good on his threat against her mother if she _did _turn him in, so at least she'd know some of the pain Hiccup and Valka would have gone through.

But his mother was right - Astrid played 'normal' pretty well, but there was some dark deviance under the surface, rising up as the words _"I like serial killers" _when she kissed him after he'd spilled her blood. Then again, he knew it was unlikely that anyone _sane _would fall for him. He and Astrid _had_ bonded over conversations about forensics and death and blood spatter. Their first date had included advice about techniques for wounding and killing someone with a head wound.

Honestly, it was surprising he hadn't noticed Astrid was a little... whatever she was, before. But then, he'd always been a little bit distracted, always on edge just a bit to make sure he never spilled the secrets he hid. Now she knew, there was less to hold back.

Hiccup tended to their chickens out back when he got home, collecting the eggs and putting down fresh feed, laughing as they pecked and clucked at him.

"Yes, yes, I know! Here, eat up!"

That done with, Hiccup hobbled down the steps to his little murder room, cleaning supplies in hand. The blood on the floor had dried, so he made sure to get each drop. His knife had already been put in the cleaning solution he always used, so once he got the floor cleaned he was basically done. Hiccup gave the room a cursory sweep and dust too, since he was at it.

By the time he'd hauled himself up the stairs again, his mother was waking up from her nap. She thanked him for the drink he made her, before broaching the topic of Astrid again.

"How do you know you can trust her?"

She eyed him a little shrewdly, waiting for his answer.

"I don't _know _I can, I guess, but... I dunno. She's never given me a reason not to. I showed her my scars and she didn't run, she didn't even _ask _cus she could tell I didn't want to talk about it. She knew I was... that I'd never dated anyone, and never took advantage of me for being clueless and inexperienced. Never pushed about bringing her to meet you, kept her mother at bay as long as she could because she knew I was nervous. I pinned her to the floor holding a knife and she didn't run. If I can't trust her, _who _would I trust? Apart from you, of course."

Sipping at her drink, Valka lowered her mug.

"I hope you're right about her son. For all of our sakes."

* * *

It took some convincing for Hiccup to show her how he hunted on his computer, obviously wary of giving away even _more _than she already knew, but Astrid managed to talk him round.

"Why do you want to see all this?"

"Because I'm obsessed with serial killers and I will _obviously_ never get this close to one who is so willing to talk to me ever again. Not safely, anyway."

Still seeming a bit unsure, Hiccup shifted up so Astrid could sit next to him on his bed, watching him tap away at the keyboard. She wasn't anywhere near as computer illiterate as her mother, but Hiccup had spent years holed up with nothing but a laptop and a desperate need to distract himself from hearing his mother be hurt and so Astrid could only vaguely understand some of what he did, eventually seeing a list buried deep in his files that Hiccup slowly went through with her.

"I'm assuming the letters and colours make more sense to you than me?"

"Letters are what they did. DA is domestic abuse, R is rapist, RR is _repeated _rapist, and so on. Red are repeat offenders who should be killed sooner rather than later. Orange are those I suspect have done it before, but can't prove it. Blue are the ones who's computers have illegal porn on, because bastards like those share and its a good way to find new targets. Purple is for 'need more evidence, but don't take off the list'. Green are the ones I think might be falsely accused, but I still keep an eye on."

It wasn't a short list. If Hiccup planned on taking out every one on that list, even if he did one or two a month, there were still a couple of years worth on there and that wasn't including if he _added_ to it.

"So you hack their computers as well as their lives?"

"Yep."

Seeing him move a few names around, marking some with italics and bolds and asterisks, Astrid pointed to a name at the top of the list.

"Who's this one, underlined?"

"Hopefully, my next target. He's not long out of prison for raping kids which is why he's still currently breathing air, but he also killed his wife and made it look like suicide when she caught him molesting his son."

Astrid raised an eyebrow.

"Wow, ok. And you know all this, _how?_"

"A few things. Here, see for yourself."

As though he were presenting her with a powerpoint in any old office, Hiccup pulled up a folder for that name, and passed the laptop over to Astrid so she could read it for herself. He had everything - the autopsy report for the wife, the investigation into the son, and then some screenshot images of comments from an online forum, more of private messages exchanged by two people.

"His _son_ asked you to do it?"

"Yeah. I don't usually take requests, too much of a trail, but I'm making an exception for him. Any cop with their eyes half open would have seen that suicide was staged, but the lead detective was cheating on his wife with the medical examiner" Hiccup had proof of _that _too "and wanted a quick close, because they were already about to lock up the father for what he did to kids and didn't want to hand the whole case over to another detective for a murder investigation. Which is doubly stupid, since he'd get put away for _longer _if he went down for the murder."

Astrid nodded, listening and reading through the comments. It was like Hiccup was conducting an investigation all of his own, and keeping evidence for who and why.

"Does his son know who you are?"

"Well, I was on the deep web in a forum where people share stolen pictures of my handiwork and talk about the Night Fury. I keep track of what people know about me. There's a whole sub-forum where people write about who they wish I'd pick. That one caught my eye, although if I ever get bored there were a lot more on there to look in to. Anyway, when I saw that and looked it up, I found he's only about an hour away. I contacted the son. Didn't explicitly tell him who I am, and I'll have to change usernames when I do it, but we talked about it for a while."

Shifting slightly, Astrid handed his laptop back over, seeing the way his face darkened slightly and it reminded her of the change in him down in his little murder room, where her quiet, dorky boyfriend and the Night Fury collided and coalesced into one.

"So, when?"

"Hard to say. He's not allowed out after a certain time, and he's also not supposed to have the internet either. But he bought a tool to remove his electronic ankle bracelet online two days ago, so once that arrives I'm sure it's only a matter of time before I get my chance. I should choose what I'm gonna hit him with."

Astrid bit her lip, _knowing _she shouldn't be _turned on _by hearing what he was saying, by the images conjured, but still her skin warmed and her belly tingled. Hiccup was oblivious, but then he was currently planning a murder so Astrid supposed his attentions weren't solely on her.

He closed his laptop and looked at her, gaze lingering on her face and the open collar of her shirt.

"Are you alright? You seem a little flushed."

"Me? Fine!" well, her voice didn't come out _that _high, but Hiccup didn't look convinced so Astrid gave up "I just kinda wanna jump you right now."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow, leaning to place his laptop on the side before he sat up properly.

"Now I _never_ thought I'd say this to anyone, but I think you have issues."

Astrid sat up herself - he wasn't wrong, and she knew it.

"Is that a yes to the jumping?"

Still seeming a little surprised, Hiccup nodded slowly.

"Sure, but you're gonna have to be quiet. Moms sleeping"

Victorious, Astrid wasted no time climbing into his lap. If she needed to quiet herself, she could always just bite him.

-HTTYD-

**What a pair, eh?**


	17. Chapter 17

**So since the timing and stuff seems to have some confused, for reference, this chapter takes place _after_ the end of chapter 15, and chapter 16 took place in between parts one and two of chapter 15, to answer questions people had.**

**But since there were complaints about 'cliffhanger' on the smut (have I conditioned you guys that much I can't fade to black hahaha)... here.**

-HTTYD-

Perched on the stairs watching Hiccup hang up his latest completed, dry drawing, adding it to the collection, Astrid was struck with memories and inspiration.

"Hey Hiccup?"

"Yeah?"

Given what had happened the first time Astrid ventured into what she now affectionately called his 'murder room', Hiccup had been surprised when she voluntarily went back, though she reminded him if he ever raised a hand to her again - at least, one she didn't _ask _for - she'd use his own knife to remove it.

"I just realised something."

"Is this something you're going to share with the class, or should I start guessing?"

Sticking her tongue out at her sarcastic boyfriend, Astrid stretched her arms over her head to relieve the ache in her back, smirked to herself when she saw Hiccup's eyes follow bared skin where her shirt rode up.

"Asshole. As I was _saying, _I realised something. I've never seen you... dressed up as the Night Fury."

Hiccup stilled, turning to raise an eyebrow at her.

"Well, that's probably a good thing. Not many people have seen me in it and lived to tell the tale."

Well, that was a fair point. Still, Astrid was ready for that.

"Heather has. And that's really not fair. I want to see it."

Hiccup rolled his eyes, moving over to the wheelchair he often used while down there and sitting down.

"I get the feeling this is not an _innocent_ request."

Astrid did her best to _look _innocent, but Hiccup wasn't fooled. He reached down to pull up his pyjama bottoms, rather oddly changing his usual prosthetic for the one she knew he only wore when 'hunting'. The one he'd modified to hide things like a mini blowtorch and a knife in, because who was going to search an amputee's prosthetic even if he _was _caught?

"What are you doing?"

"You want me to put my hunting gear on, I need the right leg. The bottoms don't sit right on my usual one."

Realising she was about to get her way, Astrid waited patiently, feeling the first flickers of heat in her belly. He hadn't been wrong about it not being an entirely innocent-minded request... Hiccup stood, taking a few steps on his leg and Astrid realised how his stance and posture shifted with it - he'd had to learn to walk without a limp, which wasn't easy and there were some days he could barely even _stand, _let alone walk without limping but he'd managed to fool the cops all the same.

"My clothes are upstairs."

Astrid scrambled to turn and ascend to the main floor of his home, waiting sort-of-patiently at the top for him to catch up. They both peered out of the window furtively first, but Inspector Hunter hadn't come back that night. Hiccup obtained his things from where they went after being cleaned, the leather still in good shape considering just how _often_ Hiccup must have cleaned blood and whatever else out of it.

He changed in his room while Astrid waited outside, anticipation climbing when she heard heavy boots on the ground. Hiccup finally opened the door, revealing it to her.

"I'm not putting the helmet on too."

Astrid didn't give a _damn _about the helmet at that moment, because _damn _Hiccup looked... she didn't have words to describe it, responding by shoving the door shut behind her and all but throwing herself on him. Hiccup grunted as Astrid's body impacted his, the leather cold against her skin as she moulded herself to Hiccup. It took the last shreds of her brain not to just throw him against a wall, because she knew it would probably traumatise him. Even dressed like _that, _Astrid knew it was still Hiccup.

"Are you actually really into this?"

He seemed a little unsure, which Astrid found a little amusing since she was _very clearly _in to it. She nodded, dragging him back to her mouth to kiss him roughly. His hands were hesitant at first, but she understood that more; he so rarely touched gently when dressed as he was. Not that she'd _mind _him roughing her up a little right now...

Hiccup took a little coaxing to realise Astrid wasn't afraid of him, a little encouragement always going a long way with him. He knew her body well enough by then that his hands sought out her sensitive spots. The feel of his gloves made her shiver, impeding the sense of skin on skin as he curled his fingers to grip at her back; if he dug his nails in the right spot, Astrid all but went weak in the knees, but the scrape of those gloves on bare skin had her stumbling into him, mewling in need. Hiccup faltered, confused.

"You alright?"

"Fuck yes, keep going!"

He complied, a mix of hesitant and obedient as Hiccup kissed her, one hand holding her up while the other roamed her sides and stomach, goosebumps erupting on her skin as she wriggled out of her top, Hiccup proving the dexterity his gloves afforded by opening her bra one handed in them before he frowned and took them off.

"Hey! I like them!"

"I don't want to risk them being full of your DNA."

Reluctantly accepting that reasoning, Astrid still let Hiccup press her down on his bed - unusual in itself - and thrilled in the cool leather against her bare chest as he let his weight rest against her. Wriggling under him, Astrid thrilled in the firm shape of his erection, wet and throbbing and _empty _herself as the scent of leather filled her lungs and Hiccup dared to bite teasingly at her neck, her collarbone - he never really left marks, but he could drive her to distraction when he wanted to without more than a little redness.

He groped her breast harder than usual, the pressure of his teeth threatening to mark her. Astrid shivered when his tongue ran over the tiny scar on her neck; to trust him again after that wasn't necessarily _easy,_ but he hadn't tried to hurt her since, and seemed increasingly trusting in her as he shared the deeper details, the way he planned his kills.

"Quiet down!"

Hiccup hissed at her ear, and Astrid hadn't even realised she was whimpering and keening so much, body quivering with building arousal before he'd even got her fully undressed. She bit down on her bottom lip to try and stay quiet, but it wasn't easy when Hiccup's mouth found a swollen, sensitive nipple, sucking it between his lips and mocking her efforts to silence her moans with the heat of his tongue.

"Astrid, _seriously_, you're being too loud."

He said it as though she could help it, as though it wasn't his clothes and his touch that had her a needy wreck already. It was less of an issue when they were at her place, in her bed, where only her neighbours were disturbed as opposed to Hiccup's mother, but it wasn't like she was in any state to suggest stopping and relocating.

"Your fault!"

He actually rolled his eyes, shaking his head.

"How is it my fault? You've managed to stay quiet before."

Astrid nodded down at his outfit.

"You're not usually dressed like _that."_

He frowned, and Astrid could see him trying to think, to decide how to quiet her because the thought of his mother having to hear them made him pretty uncomfortable. Astrid thought quick before he suggested they stop, brain helpfully conjuring ideas soon enough.

"Get up for a minute."

She didn't _like _it, missed the unforgiving feel of leather on her skin, but Hiccup complied and moved. Astrid wriggled out of the last of her clothes before turning over, saw various emotions run across Hiccup's face.

"What are you doing?"

"Fuck me like this, the pillows will quiet me down."

Given Hiccup's surprisingly meek, submissive nature during sex, it wasn't a position they'd employed before but it _was _one Astrid enjoyed - she'd never brought it up before because Hiccup had issues with the connotations of dominance when they had sex, which didn't surprise her, and he also liked to see her face, to read her emotions to soothe himself.

But they'd crossed many bridges together as Astrid taught him how sex could be more than what the traumatised boy had thought it meant, and she thought he ought to know well enough Astrid wasn't going to suggest something she wasn't ok with.

"I don't know if I can. I can't see you properly like that."

Straightening up on her knees, Astrid twisted to touch his cheek, draw him closer. Her body protested the delay, but Hiccup was fragile and Astrid cared too much to push him just because she was obscenely turned on by him.

"If you can't, it's ok. I just want you to try. If it's too much, we can stop, alright? But it's a good position you've never tried."

"But you have?"

Astrid nodded.

"Yeah. Before you, obviously."

"And... liked it?"

"Yeah. It feels... different. Deeper. And, from what I've heard, feels a little tighter for you."

Hiccup didn't have much context for the variations, but Astrid could see he was curious. He'd gone a little soft while distracted by the logistics, but that was nothing Astrid couldn't fix as she reached down. Hiccup helped her undo the complicated fastening, gasping and groaning so nicely as Astrid sucked him back to hardness, thrilling in the way he swelled in her mouth.

Thrumming in anticipation as he clambered up a little awkwardly onto the bed behind her, Astrid kept her head turned so he could see her for a minute, encouraging him as Hiccup fussed and shifted to find a comfortable way to kneel first, before taking himself in hand and guiding until Astrid sighed happily at the feel of his cock pressing into her inch by inch, eager to be filled at last. Hiccup looked to her for reassurance, checking that everything was good. Astrid rocked back on him, felt his hips flex forward in response.

"Alright?"

He nodded.

"Good."

The twist was starting to hurt her neck, so Astrid threw Hiccup a smile before she turned back, letting him find his rhythm in peace. He had to shift a couple of times to find the right angle to move at, but when Astrid felt the cool leather of his bottoms on the back of her thighs and his hands wrapping around her hips, she shivered and pushed back again, urging him to _move. _He did, first few thrusts a little clumsy but _oh, _he felt bigger, hit her deeper. And Hiccup was nothing if not capable of great focus, and when he saw how she responded, he _thrived_ on it.

Astrid let her face fall into the pillows under her, resting on bent arms as Hiccup quickened his pace a little more, muffling her moans in the soft fabric that smelled like Hiccup. He leant forward, pushing his weight into his thrusts, each one making her shake and cry out as her blood ran hotter. Her body wound tighter and tighter until she snapped, biting down on the pillow to keep from screaming as she spasmed, felt sure if Hiccup didn't have hands on her hips she'd have melted in place with how jelly-like her twitching legs were.

Hiccup stilled, but Astrid could feel he was still hard, hadn't come yet.

"You're not done?"

He shook his head, actually smirking a little when she lifted her head to look at him. She liked it.

"Not even close. You?"

Oh, she wasn't about to let him challenge her like _that. _Astrid pushed herself up, shaking her head.

"Nope. Carry on."

"You sure?"

He asked, voice softer, checking. Astrid nodded, body quite agreeable at the prospect of more already.

More sensitive post-climax, she felt his continued thrusts more acutely, the harder ones making her fingers curl tight in the sheets and leaving her whimpering into the bed again when he started to move quicker. Hiccup's hands slipped, damp with sweat but he gripped tighter at her hips seconds later and Astrid felt sure he must be getting too hot in all that leather. She could relate, skin feeling like it was on fire, hair wet against her cheeks and forehead and her breath coming in great gulps between muffled moans.

Astrid felt the way his rhythm faltered, knew by the way he let out those little whines he was close, trying to hold out for _her _now. She leant her weight more on one hand and shoved the other down to touch herself to help Hiccup bring her off again. Astrid beat him by seconds, still feeling the rush of ecstacy when he shuddered and spilled, weight dropping more heavily against her as he too was overcome by his orgasm.

He staggered up from the bed still panting, peeling off the jacket and trousers he had on with a great sigh of relief while Astrid tried to remember how her limbs worked. Hiccup immediately looked for something else to put on, pulling on shorts before he got the wipes from his bedside, taking a couple for himself before tossing the pack over to the mess of sweat and satisfaction that was Astrid on the bed.

"I'm gonna have to clean these again now, and nobody is even dead."

"I think I am, if that counts."

Hiccup looked at Astrid like she was mad, brushing some incriminating blonde hairs from his jacket and putting both clothes and boots over on his desk chair. He waited for Astrid to regain a small measure of coherence, so she could beckon him over to the bed, curling against his scarred torso with a deep, contented sigh.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to make a mess of your supervillain costume."

He snorted with laughter, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"Supervillain. I like that. Who is my superhero arch nemesis then?"

"Probably Inspector Hunter. Next time I'm dragged in for questioning I'll ask him if he ever wears spandex."

Hiccup laughed again, brushing damp hair off her face.

"See, anyone else I would think was kidding, but you absolutely would."

Astrid grinned.

"That's why you like me."

"I..."

Hiccup started, but he trailed off right away, seeming unable to continue. Astrid pushed herself up to look at him, seeing his face all tense again.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"I... damnit. I can't say it."

It took her a second or two to cotton on, realising _what _Hiccup was trying to say.

"You don't have to say it."

He sighed, looking a little forlorn still.

"I do, though. I just... I've never said it to anyone but my mom before."

Astrid kissed him, stroked his stubbled jaw until he relaxed a little again.

"It's ok. I don't need to hear it to know you care."

"Really?"

She nodded, nuzzling him until he let out a short chuckle at the ticklish feeling.

"Really."

-HTTYD-

**I didn't _mean _to make the whole chapter smut, but it just sorta... happened. So there. Have some porn with a dash of feelings and the thought of Eret in spandex. You're welcome.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Last chapter responses had me in fits of giggles, from cold showers to spandex... hehehe**

-HTTYD-

"Just when I thought you couldn't appear any stranger, you come out with your most insane idea yet."

"Oh come on, it's not _that _insane if you think about it."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow at her, shaking his head.

_"What, _exactly, do you think is _sane _about pretending the Night Fury has taken an interest in you?"

"Well, he _has._ And it's a great way for me to get information straight from the source, without revealing that said source is you."

He continued to shake his head, raining on Astrid's genius parade. Astrid wanted to use more of his work in her books, but Hiccup had been right to say there was only so much she could get away with before it became clear she was getting information not available to the public, or even the police in some instances.

So Astrid had the idea of the Night Fury writing to her. Anonymously, of course. Hiccup wasn't impressed.

"Except the whole handwriting thing. With my hands, I can barely write as it is, I certainly can't fake a different writing style."

"Hmm. Good point. I still think we should consider it. It would take Eret's eye off you. Well, his suspicions. I think he'd still check you out."

"Astrid! He does _not _check me out."

It was Astrid's turn to roll her eyes, stretching out along her bed with a sigh.

"He really does. And so he should! I mean, I know his sail blows both ways, he hooked up with my friend Ruff and her boyfriend."

Hiccup blinked.

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, did I not mention that?" he shook his head slowly "Well, yeah. It was a random hook up, Ruff and her boyfriend both like hooking up with other guys. Sometimes they share. Inspector Hunter was out drinking, probably to drown his sorrows that he can't catch the Night Fury. So yeah, I have it on very good authority he's into guys and girls. Ruff was actually who I was on the phone to when you sat next to me on the bus and failed miserably at following me."

His face turned rather sheepish.

"I still think you have superpowers. I follow people all the time and nobody ever notices until I want them to. Nobody except you."

Astrid grinned.

"Maybe you wanted me to notice you."

It had certainly worked out pretty well for them both that she _had._

"Maybe. I should get going, you want to work on writing and my mom will be awake soon."

Reluctantly, Astrid agreed, stealing kisses from him before she let him go. Because Hiccup was wonderful like that, he'd left her flavoured coffee sachets and cupcakes in the fridge, ready to fuel her without having to go out for pastry. Setting herself up, Astrid hovered over the page she was working on, then scrolled back up and tapped out a new version of the acknowledgement that would go in the front page.

_To the Night Fury, who keeps stealing my ideas. I figure turnabout is fair play._

_To the inspector who keeps arresting me, please realise I am far too busy writing about killing people to actually kill anyone._

It might not get past the people who edited and published her... but Hiccup might come around on the letter thing if Astrid put in a big neon sign to catch the attention of the Night Fury.

She sent him a text asking if he was awake, which Hiccup answered affirmatively, so Astrid called him. Some things shouldn't be asked by text.

"What's up?"

"Are you busy?"

"Not right now, just put food in the oven so I have a little time."

"Ok, cool. Just wondering how you manage to never cut your hands when stabbing people. The internet says that happens a lot."

Hiccup coughed, and Astrid could clearly see him taking a mouthful of drink and choking on it at her sudden, blunt query. After a few more coughs to clear his throat, Hiccup managed to answer.

"I wear some really heavy duty gloves, which mean I don't lose my grip on the blade when the handle is bloody. And if I hit bone, which is the other way to cut your hand cus your hand keeps going and the knife doesn't, the gloves protect my skin then. I paid a lot for those gloves for a reason. Stops me leaving my blood at the scene. Yes mom, I'm giving Astrid writing advice."

Astrid snorted at the conversation she overheard, Valka fussing about their very casual tone when it came to discussing his murders and techniques.

"Anything else?"

"Where are you most likely to hit a bone and risk the slip?"

"Uh. Chest is the main one because of the ribcage, but anywhere there's a bone is possible. Neck, if you catch the spine. Stomach, you can catch the pelvis. Legs and arms, self explanatory."

Scribbling it down in her notebook, Astrid nodded to herself.

"Thanks! I'll leave you to it, I have killings to write. Love you!"

"Yeah. You too. Bye."

Hiccup was getting closer, though he still couldn't _say _he loved her, Astrid knew what he meant by _you too _on the phone just then. It left her smiling, watching him slowly eek his way out from all the fractured walls around his heart.

Three cupcakes and too many chocolate-orange coffees later, Astrid was jittery with the sugar and caffeine rush, but the two chapters she'd churned out seemed largely legible and contained all the useful details she'd gotten from Hiccup.

Rising from her chair, Astrid stretched, various parts of her body aching from the typing, the hunching over the keyboard, the fact her desk chair was wearing out and probably just the whole lack of movement for the last couple of hours. Feeling a little sick with the sweet, decadent cupcakes in her stomach - given her sugar tolerance, it was impressive Hiccup could bake anything that made her nauseous - Astrid drank some water, then headed for a shower to ease her aches.

Hiccup called her a little later, letting her know he wouldn't be available for a few hours.

Astrid knew what that meant.

* * *

Sometimes, they were stubborn, refusing to just _die _until Hiccup left them battered and broken beyond hope of repair.

They never won the survival game, but Hiccup supposed they put up a fair fight. For a scumbag, anyway. He stood up, looking for any tiny twitch that would suggest he wasn't done yet. After a few minutes, he knelt back down and listened, hearing not even the faintest breath.

Adding a kick to the gut for good measure, Hiccup was satisfied they were definitely dead. It was tough to find a spot not covered in bruises or blood, given how long he'd had to spend beating them to death, but it was cathartic in a way most other methods weren't. He'd feel the ache in his muscles tomorrow, in his legs and arms and back, and question how his skinny self was capable of the force needed.

But for now, he pressed the hot metal to skin, feeling that final weight lift as he left his mark in place. Flexing his fingers, Hiccup felt the swelling along his knuckles starting to come up, knew there'd be bruises in the morning. He had plenty of experience covering up bruises.

His mother wasn't up when he got back, but she was usually woken by his return and sure enough, he found Valka in the kitchen when Hiccup returned from his shower.

"Your hand looks sore."

"Yeah, probably will be tomorrow. But my hands hurt anyway, at least this ones for a good cause. Tea?"

Struggling to find sleep, Hiccup got up quite early and flicked the TV on in the background as he iced his swollen hand a little before sitting down with a bowl of fruit to wait for his murder to hit the news.

He wasn't waiting long.

"_Breaking news: Another Night Fury Kill?"_

Was it breaking if they weren't sure? Hiccup wondered how long they actually, seriously questioned if it was one of his. That was the reason he used the same mark each time, after all. Otherwise he could burn them with anything he found nearby that could heat up enough and probably get the same release.

"_You awake?"_

Astrid's text wasn't much of a surprise, and Hiccup called her rather than answer.

"Morning."

"Hey. Did you get any sleep last night?"

"Not really. Figured I'd wait for the news. You?"

Astrid yawned down the phone, followed by the sound of slurping.

"Yeah, some. Promised myself an early gym session before work. If I get arrested again, my boss is going to start asking questions."

"Not my fault! You got arrested before we met!"

"Because my books resembled _your_ murders. Definitely your fault."

Ok, she might have had a point there.

"Fine. Sorry. Want me to let you go?"

"In a minute. Coffee first. It's rare I enjoy an actual _hot _coffee, especially one I made myself."

They watched the news together over the phone until Astrid had to go if she wanted to work out before work. Hiccup finished his fruit and laid on the sofa, dozing on and off as the news looped through the same few seconds of camera roll that wasn't too grisly, and discussed the usual lack of details. He stirred a little to watch Eret Hunter stroll into view, the man rubbing a hand over his tired face clouded with stubble as he dodged the reporter and vanished behind the crime scene tape. With the angle of the alleyway in which Hiccup left the body, once Eret turned to his right, there was only a little corner of forensics tent to be seen from where the camera was allowed to be.

Hiccup was just drifting off again when he heard his mom getting up, hauling himself off the sofa with a sigh to go make sure she ate and took her meds.

"Did you sleep son?"

"Not much. Happens. I'm alright."

He did get a little more rest after that, watching TV with his mom and letting his eyes fall closed, though sleep never fully claimed him before his phone began to ring. Confused, Hiccup answered it.

"Astrid?"

"Guess where I'm going?"

"Uh, do I get a clue?"

"Nee-naw nee-naw."

"Siren... oh. Cop shop?"

"Yep!"

Hiccup sat up properly, trying to shake off the residual sleepiness clinging to his brain.

"Again?"

"Well, yanno, fresh body. What else are they gonna do? I think they're about to tell me I can't have my phone though. Would you come get me in like, half an hour?"

Since it was _his _fault, Hiccup wasn't about to say no.

"Uh, sure."

"Would you bring me pastry?"

Hiccup couldn't help laughing - Astrid was about to be questioned on suspicion of murder, and she was probably standing there in front of the cops arranging her ride home and asking for a snack too.

Struck by an idea in a voice that sounded very much like Astrid inside his head, Hiccup nodded to himself.

"Sure. Coffee too?"

"If you don't mind?"

"Not at all. See you soon."

His mother looked perplexed by the one-sided conversation, and since Hiccup had a few minutes, he relayed what she'd missed on the other side.

"She's definitely... unique."

"Oh, absolutely. I better go get dressed and put something over my hand, can't walk into the station with bruised up knuckles when they've got a battered corpse."

Hiccup made sure Valka had food she could reheat in the microwave, filled up her water bottle and told her she could call if she needed him.

"Oh go on, get out of here. I'm sure Astrid will only get herself into more trouble if you don't."

"I get the feeling Astrid will get into trouble whether I'm there or not. But point taken."

He changed into his comfortable hoody and slightly-too-big jeans, feeling very much like he was putting on armour that protected him from the outside world. Bidding his mother goodbye, Hiccup hopped in his car and drove over to the pastry shop by Astrid's house. Heather seemed very surprised to see him in there alone.

"Hiccup, right?"

"Yeah. I uh. Strange question. You remember the cop who came in before? Tall, big, tattoo here?"'

He gestured to his neck. Heather nodded.

"Yeah... why?"

"Do you remember what he ordered?"

"Hard to forget, given what he... never mind. Why do you ask?"

"Can I get that, and whatever Astrid usually gets?"

Looking ever more confused, Heather nodded slowly and began making up the order. He picked up a sugary treat for himself to eat on the way over, driving slowly so he wouldn't lose the two cups in the little cardboard holder and cover his car with coffees.

Still feeling a little like he was walking into the lions den, Hiccup grabbed the pastry bag and coffees, heading in to the police station. They obviously knew why he was there and waved him through that time, eyeing his little stash with interest.

"Haddock?"

"Astrid asked me to come get her, but you know that already."

The not-Eret cop frowned, then turned and vanished into a door across the room in silence. A minute later, Inspector Hunter left through the same door, without Astrid, and came over to where Hiccup was standing.

"We're not done questioning her yet."

"Why? You know she didn't do it. Oh. I brought you coffee. I know how much hard work Astrid can be."

Eret took the cup with a truly bewildered expression, and Hiccup was reminded strongly of when they'd caught him outside Hiccup's home.

"It's what you got from Heather in the pastry cafe. Not poisoned, promise. I didn't even make it. Can I have my girlfriend back now? Or is she actually under arrest this time?"

Still holding his drink, Eret headed back to the room. A minute later, Astrid appeared, smiling brightly at Hiccup and actually turning to give a wave to the police who were reluctantly letting her go. She kissed him, then picked up her coffee and pastry.

"Shall we go?"

"Sure."

When they got outside, Astrid turned to Hiccup, swallowing a mouthful of sweet treat before she asked.

"Did I see another travel cup in Inspector Hunter's hand?"

"Yeah. I brought him coffee. He was very surprised."

Astrid giggled.

"How many drinks are you gonna get him before he worries you're hitting on him?"

Hiccup rolled his eyes.

"I was just reminding him of the incident outside my house. It made him let you go, didn't it?"

Astrid shrugged.

"It is _really _good coffee. Could be considered a bribe."

Shaking his head, Hiccup waited for Astrid to get into his car before sliding in to the drivers seat himself. Before Astrid, he'd never have voluntarily set foot in a police station. They'd have had to drag him in, cuffed and protesting.

Now he was practically playing pranks on them.

What had she done to him?

-HTTYD-

**Credit to Sands Buisle for their amusing idea of a book acknowledgement!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Insanity Studios Ink - Thanks for the info and all, but I promise I knew all that. Lost someone to an air embolism they suffered while in hospital. It's also why _Astrid _made that comment, because her knowledge of murder was, at the time, largely theoretical. **

-HTTYD-

Hiccup sighed and brought a hand to his face, shaking his head. Astrid looked quite proud of herself.

"What are you _doing, _writing an acknowledgement to the Night Fury in your book?"

"You do know _you _are the Night Fury, right?"

He rolled his eyes.

"Yes. But I'm hoping nobody else does! If you keep drawing the attention of a serial killer to yourself in a public way, people might start looking closer and wondering why he hasn't killed you yet."

Astrid scratched her jaw absently.

"Yeah... I can't really tell everyone it's cus I suck his cock now can I?"

Hiccup choked on air, spluttering before shaking his head at her.

"Astrid!"

"What? I do! And he likes it!"

Hiccup could only roll his eyes again as Astrid smirked smugly before lifting another slice of pizza to her mouth. She was _incorrigible._

"Still, it wasn't your brightest idea."

Astrid held up a hand, bidding him to wait while she chewed and swallowed.

"It was a brilliant idea. Now if the Night Fury writes to me, it'll look like he's intrigued. Yanno, it would probably be good for my book sales if people think the Night Fury likes them."

"We've talked about this. I'm not putting my very distinctive handwriting out there into the world."

"I know. I have an idea."

He had to wait while she chewed another mouthful of food, which Hiccup suspected was entirely intentional on Astrid's part to frustrate him a little bit with curiousity. She wasn't wrong about one thing.

The Night Fury _was _intrigued by Astrid Hofferson.

"It can't be a printer, either. Print outs can be traced to an exact printer with the yellow-dot thing."

Astrid swallowed.

"I know."

"Then unless you're going to kidnap somebody to write for me, I'm running out of ideas."

Astrid grinned.

"Typewriter. You own at least two."

Hiccup had to admit he hadn't thought about those. He never used them. They were stiff and noisy, and he had very little use for them anyway - anything he needed to type, he did on his phone or his laptop.

"I inherited them when my grandmother died. I don't even know if they work."

"Well, if they do..."

"I'll _think _about it. Astrid, you have to realise you are asking a lot of me here."

She softened, nodding.

"I know. And if you're really against it, I won't push it. But I think you're against getting caught more than actually writing the letters, and if we're smart about it... plus, I'm not going to brag about the letters, am I? It's just a little backup for if the cops pull me in on something I shouldn't know. I can show them the letters, and say you told me. Just not that it's _you. _Were those typewriters in your grandma's will?"

Hiccup shook his head.

"No. She told us before she died we could take what we wanted when she was gone, and mom couldn't do much clearing out so I spent a few days gutting the place. Most of the stuff was sold or given to charity, but yeah, I got those old typewriters. I don't know why, I just liked the look of them and I didn't keep much else."

It hadn't been a fun time; they hadn't seen a lot of each other, but he loved her and she cared about them even though her son Stoick was long dead. Not that his grandmother had ever known much of the abuse, though Hiccup was sure she had her suspicions but by the time she died, Hiccup had already put his bastard of a stepfather in the ground.

"Ok. Eat your food, then we can talk typewriters."

Hiccup did as he was told; Astrid largely had that effect on him. It was lucky he thought her safe enough to trust with that much control over him, otherwise it would have been a problem that his instinct was to do as she said. After they ate, Astrid invited herself into his lap, careful not to lean on his full stomach.

"What am I even supposed to write in these letters?"

Astrid grinned in that way Hiccup saw all too often - the smile that said she'd gotten her way. For someone as meticulous as he, it was probably not all that sensible to be such a slave to the whims of his girlfriend, but Hiccup couldn't help it. Just like he couldn't help falling for her, ill-advised as _that _was for him to do.

* * *

Well, Hiccup certainly didn't do things by halves.

Astrid had to be careful with the envelope, because while he'd worn his gloves, Hiccup had left a smear of blood on it. He'd literally dropped it off on his way back from one of his bloodied, messy jaunts, hand-delivered to her address in the dead of night.

And, with a show of forethought, he'd added at the bottom of his letter _don't go to the cops with this, or you'll regret it, _because that way Astrid would be able to plausibly explain why she hadn't turned them in when she inevitably had to reveal the existence of the letters.

"Blood? Really?"

"You wanted to correspond with a serial killer, what do you expect?"

Astrid tried to refrain from rolling her eyes at Hiccup's attempt to sound impressive and scary.

"It was an accident, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, I forgot my gloves were still wet when I pulled the envelope out of my jacket."

Laughing at his defeated tone when she caught him out, Astrid reached for her coffee.

"Well, I'll be sure to keep it for shock value and I will start writing about how much you like the feeling of an axe handle. Well, not _you. _You know what I mean."

"Yeah. Well, have fun. I've got a physio appointment to check on my leg, so I'll leave you to your writing."

"Let me know how it goes?"

"I will."

"Love you."

Astrid waited.

"You too."

He'd get there. Astrid hung up and turned back to her keyboard, chugged more coffee and began typing. Her last book hadn't been released that long ago, but according to Hiccup her little 'shout out' to the Night Fury had not gone unnoticed by his 'fans'. Hiccup wasn't that fond of _having _fans, which Astrid found hilarious when he knew she was _quite _so enamoured with her serial killer boyfriend.

"You don't like having fans, but you don't mind that I climb on top of you when you talk murder to me?"

"You're different."

"How?"

"You're _completely_ mad, for starters."

Astrid snorted.

"True, but I can't imagine that in itself is unique to me when compared to forums full of people who are fascinated by your work."

"Alright, valid point. But..." Hiccup sighed, dragging a hand through his hair and messing the already-tousled mop further "I don't know, it just feels like this is _my _sickness. I don't want it spreading. The last thing I need is a copycat."

Astrid nodded, nudging his arm and seeing if Hiccup was open to cuddling. He lifted his arm to let her in, so Astrid wriggled up close to him.

"Well, you've completely ruined my future plans to become a serial killer, but I understand."

Hiccup tutted, shaking his head but he turned and kissed her hair.

"You, Astrid, truly defy words."

"Words frequently defy me, thats why I swear at my keyboard so often."

Hiccup chuckled.

"Mom will be up soon. Are you staying for dinner?"

Reluctant as she was to cease cuddling him, Astrid knew he'd not be drawn away from caring for Valka.

"I shouldn't, but yes. I'll regret not running some other time. Feed me!"

He let Astrid steal kisses from him first, but then very rudely got off the bed and left Astrid without cuddles. Pouting for a few seconds very maturely, Astrid watched as his hands twitched toward his hoody, but after some visible struggling, he left it. He still didn't like his scars much, but there was a lot less covering them up than there used to be, and less tension when they _were _visible.

Valka noticed, too, though she didn't comment and Astrid wouldn't be surprised if she always kept her scars covered, especially given her suspicions that mother had gotten it worse than son.

"Are you still on the news?"

She asked her son, who looked up from what he was doing with a thoughtful expression.

"Probably. Astrid, turn the TV on for me?"

Astrid fumbled with the remote, managing to bring up the news and sure enough, in the never-ending loop of repeated news, the latest Night Fury kill made the rounds.

"Yeah!"

"Hey, did Inspector Hunter respond to your shout out to him?"

"Not yet. I did take him a copy, but they shooed me out before I could offer to sign it to see his reaction to the acknowledgement."

Valka hmmed, looking between them.

"Be wary how much you antagonise the police."

"I am. But he's got a bit of a thing for Astrid, so she's just trying to keep him offset. He's not quite sure how to handle her."

Astrid stuck her tongue out at Hiccup.

"Though I'm sure he'd love a chance to try and figure it out."

She wondered, in passing, how Hiccup would react to that. He had no real concept of relationships other than her, but then he had probably learned monogamy from TV. On the other hand, he didn't seem jealous, only bemused, when Astrid joked about the cop.

Of course, Hiccup was also a _serial killer. _For all Astrid knew, he'd go cave in Eret's skull for touching her. The only people who induced predictable behaviour in Hiccup were her and Valka. Everyone else... not so clear-cut. It really depended what Hiccup thought of them.

After dinner, Astrid got to snuggle back up with Hiccup again, smiling when he played idly with her hair as they watched TV with Valka. The hand not touching Astrid was on his lap, clenching and flexing periodically which Astrid knew was him trying to ease the stiffness and aches he suffered. Settling after a while, he was very comfy to lean on but Astrid reluctantly acknowledged she needed to go home, needing to be up early to go to the gym the next morning before work.

"I'm just gonna drive Astrid home mom, won't be long."

He hugged Valka goodbye before he moved alongside Astrid, opting to drive her in his slippers rather than fuss with shoes for what was really only a walk from the house to his car.

"Thanks for dinner, and the ride home."

Hiccup nodded, smiled.

"Always. Go on, get inside."

He always stayed to see her into her front door before driving off, which Astrid liked for reasons she couldn't entirely word. She undid her seatbelt and turned to get her kisses goodbye from him, which Hiccup obliged her with a smile. Gods, he was beautiful.

"I love you."

Astrid prepared to hear his _you too, _and to know that he meant more than he could say, and it didn't matter because Hiccup was _trying _so damn hard for her, so she-

"I love you too."

-HTTYD-

**I know not a lot happened this chapter, but I promise I'm going somewhere!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Well bugger me, twenty chapters already?**

-HTTYD-

Grimacing slightly, Hiccup tapped away at the typewriter. He'd done all the maintenance humanly possible to it - no small feat when he'd had to wear gloves to ensure no trace off him was left behind, and when he had trouble with his hands anyway - but typewriters were still loud and slow and heavy compared to a computer keyboard.

The things he did for Astrid...

His girlfriend was currently sat nearby, perusing the sketchbook he'd started just for her; some of the drawings were _of _her, while others were illustrations for her books, helping Astrid visualise a crime scene or a fight.

"I can do it if you want."

"I know, but it's a bad idea. I sort of make this up as I go, and you... well, the cops have references for your writing style, so if they ever see this, they might notice it's too similar. Not _everyone_ there is a complete idiot."

Hiccup certainly didn't put much stock in their efforts; sure, Hiccup was careful, but he'd been at it for years now and the only person who truly suspected him was not believed by his colleagues. Astrid hummed, tracing fingers over the lines of her own naked body on the paper.

"I guess so. Still, you can take a break if your hands are hurting."

"I'm almost done. Few more lines."

Writing the letters was a strange mix of easy and hard; he could talk about his kills in graphic detail, which he'd had far more practice in lately just by dint of dating Astrid, who was (terrifyingly) interested in them. But he also had to lace the letters with a hidden threat, a sense of a stalker watching Astrid from afar, lurking dangerously in the shadows. Faceless and nameless, he couldn't be her boyfriend who loved her when he typed.

Because _gods, _did he love her. The words had rushed out of him unintentionally, and stuck on his tongue ever since, but Astrid didn't try to make him say it again though her smile when he _had _was enchanting. It almost didn't even look like the same girl who would pant roughly against his neck, breathing harsh and ragged as she asked for _more _blood, _more _death in his words.

And maybe that was why they worked. _Something _inside each of them was broken, and while their broken parts didn't quite make a whole, maybe their sharp, jagged edges fit together just enough not to hurt each other, though few beyond the two of them were safe from the wicked points. Hiccup's mother was one of those very few.

Although, Hiccup _had _hurt her. Once. Astrid had the tiny little scar to show for it, and the maddening faith in him that it wouldn't happen again. Hiccup had no _reason _to hurt her again, not when he trusted her so with his secrets, but the act of trusting a serial killer said that Astrid wasn't quite like most people. He'd known _that _right away though, hadn't he? When Astrid asked for his number, and her sparkling eyes and smirking mouth had drawn him into agreeing no matter how stupid an idea it was.

Dragging the page back one last time, Hiccup tapped out _Night Fury _at the bottom, shaking the tension from stiff wrists as he stood up again. His leg twinged, but it wasn't too bad. Carefully lifting the paper, Hiccup held it away from himself and carried it to the side, where it was folded into an envelope that he sealed with tape. Only when it had been tucked, waiting, into the jacket of his _Night Fury _outfit, did Hiccup peel off his gloves and glare at the typewriter.

"You. Are. _Mad._"

Astrid grinned.

"You've said. A few times. And yet, you still do exactly what I say."

"Yes, well, I'm a serial killer. I can't be relied on for rationality. Knives, however? Absolutely."

Shaking her head, Astrid put the sketchbook aside _gently, _knowing how important Hiccup's art was to him. A skill he'd fought to keep after Alvin broke the bones in his hands repeatedly.

"I would jump on you right now as a thank you, but I know it's almost time for you to feed your mom so I'll wait" the look in her eyes was still _obscene_ and Hiccup swallowed heavily "anything else you need down here?"

"Nope."

Astrid climbed the steps slowly, glancing back to see if Hiccup was struggling and, when she saw he wasn't, to shake her hips teasingly at him just so he'd make a strange noise. Finally out of his little murder room, Hiccup closed the door behind them before hearing his mom's distinct three-tap steps, two feet and a walking stick.

"I was starting to think you'd killed each other down there."

She deadpanned, and Hiccup wasn't sure whether to laugh or not. Astrid played along.

"Nah. At least one of us would come up alive."

"Stop it. Come on, time for food."

Hiccup sorted his mothers medicine out, then got on with cooking while Astrid jotted in her notebook, tapping the visibly-chewed end of her pen against her lip. Well, Hiccup already knew she was a biter...

"Would you ever kill somebody with a car?"

Looking up from his vegetable-dicing, Hiccup turned to Astrid with a perplexed look on his face. Oh, she could come out with the weirdest questions sometimes.

"A _car? _No. Aside from the fact I don't think I could fit it inside my leg" Astrid laughed, but gestured for him to go on "it's like, a big box of evidence. Sweat, fibres, dirt from your shoes. And then consider the distinctive bumper damage, the possibility of paint transfers. Also, would probably cost me my No Claims discount."

Giggling to herself, Astrid scribbled down notes - he'd seen her notebooks, and they were utterly indecipherable but he supposed they only had to make sense to her. And maybe her editor.

"Yeah, fair point. I really hope I can get _that _in my next one as a conversation. Ok. But if you _did, _what would it do to someone?"

Hiccup caught his mother shaking her head at them, but she just sipped her tea and listened in anyway.

"Depends how you hit them, how fast, where, if you're swerving and even what sort of car. But if they're standing, they'll almost definitely get the pedestrian marks" Astrid raised an eyebrow, so Hiccup leant down and gestured to his knees and shins "your average adult over five feet will usually take a bumper to knees or lower legs, it's a fairly distinct, recognisable impact. Then, they'll either be knocked down, in which case you can go right on over them like a speed bump and they'll get some pretty grisly crush injuries. Or they'll come up on the windshield, maybe even through it, and so there'll be impact and glass. Or they'll be flung, and injuries will depend how far you fling them... and what they hit at the end."

Hiccup was very familiar with how people broke differently depending on what they were hit with, and what they hit when they fell. He'd once had someone fall on a broken bottle when he was done, and heard through the leaks on the internet that it took a while to pick all the glass out of their face. He'd not actually intentionally 'glassed' someone himself yet... he added it to his "try that" list. He'd need to be extra careful not to cut himself... Hiccup added _look into arm protection _to the list too. He was almost as much a slave to curiousity as he was to Astrid.

Astrid who had that predatory look in her eyes again. The one that told Hiccup maybe they should head to her place when his mom went for her nap. Otherwise she might not sleep well.

* * *

"Attack me."

Hiccup blinked.

"Excuse me?"

"Ok, I could have phrased that better. I was thinking and it just sort of jumped out of my mouth."

Hiccup was still looking quite confused.

"Ok, explain more quickly please."

"I was thinking how I can manhandle you pretty easily, and I _know _part of it is that you let me, but I'm also pretty strong. You don't weigh much, really, and I'm curious how you overpower guys two or three times the size of you. And, also, I'd like to be able to defend myself against anyone else. So... attack me."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Hiccup shook his head.

"I'm not going to attack you."

Astrid pouted.

"So you don't _want _me to be able to protect myself?"

"Wait, that- it's not... I'm not going to win this am I?"

Shaking her head with a smile, Astrid stood up.

"Come on. I promise not to let you choke me to death or whatever you're worried about."

Heaving a great sigh, Hiccup got to his feet. He was clearly not enamoured.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Show me how you jump somebody."

"From the front or the back? I usually follow them for a bit first, so they get edgy and either run or back themselves against a wall or corner."

"Both?"

"Alright. Say stop if I'm hurting you."

Hiccup gestured for her to turn around, and Astrid buzzed with anticipation. It wasn't something she took lightly; if she didn't truly trust him, Astrid wouldn't have asked. He didn't move for a minute, finding his headspace.

He moved so quickly she didn't have _time _to react, and then she was on the floor with him kneeling over her, arms pinned and twisted up against her back. It was a position she _could _get out of, but _gods..._

"Wow. Ok. That was impressive. Again."

"Are you alright?"

He asked, voice low and soft.

"Fine. Just... took me by surprise, which I guess you're usually going for."

They returned to original positions, and again Hiccup took her down horrifyingly effortlessly. If he'd ever truly wanted her dead, Astrid had no doubts she would no longer be breathing. It took three more tries - one of which left Astrid with carpet burns on her knees that had sadly not happened during sex - before her body managed to react in time, though as soon as she struggled successfully, Hiccup stopped.

"Hey!"

"I didn't want you to body slam me or something. But you did good."

"One more time?"

Rolling his eyes with a faint, indulgent smile, Hiccup agreed. He changed the way his arms went around her, but Astrid was still ready to resist _just _enough, and he stepped back with a nod.

"Well?"

"You should teach self defence classes."

"Yeah, like anyone would take advice from me. I'd have to actually say I was the Night Fury on the leaflets just to get people to show up."

Astrid supposed he had a point; he didn't look half as intimidating as she knew he could be, especially in baggy clothes and with his usual pliant, quiet demeanour.

"Well, their loss. Now from the front."

"Alright, but promise not to hit me in the face? I'm usually wearing a helmet for this."

The more he roughed her up at her request, the more turned on Astrid got, and the final time he tackled her she let him, just so Hiccup would drag her to the floor and stay close enough for her to kiss him.

"Was it always meant to be foreplay?"

"No. Happy coincidence. Now get naked."

Despite the eye rolling earlier, Hiccup wasn't complaining and shed his clothes quite quickly, brushing fingers along the side of her knees and whispering an apology.

"Honestly, I've had worse from giving head in inadvisable places. Or yanno, being on all fours."

That was a rare addition to their sex life; Hiccup still liked to see her face, but he'd seen how much _she _liked being fucked from behind and so he was amenable to it on occasion. He was safe that day though, as Astrid wholly intended to mount him.

Hiccup groaned against her mouth when he felt her grind against him, already wet from their... self-defence class? Whatever it was, she had rather enjoyed it. As she pressed her hips against Hiccup again, she watched the way his hands fluttered, unsure where to settle.

"Hey, I wanna try something, but you can say no, ok?"

Hiccup nodded very slowly, obviously wary.

"What is it?"

"I want to hold you down."

He stiffened - and not in the fun way. Astrid waited, saw him take a few deep breaths.

"O-o-o-ok."

"Yeah?"

He nodded slowly. Oh, Astrid would have _loved_ to properly restrain him, with knotted rope or heavy cuffs, but she knew how fragile Hiccup could be, how damaged his sense of safety was. Plus, with his (very healthy!) fear of getting arrested, Astrid thought he might take a long time to be up for being cuffed by her.

So she did what he'd agreed to. First her hands pinned his shoulders, which wasn't much different than her bracing hands on his chest when she rode him normally, just to test how he responded to the weight. When he nodded, Astrid had him lift his hands above his head. She was shorter than him, but managed to pin his wrists with her hands and waited for his muscles to lose their sudden rigidity.

"Alright?"

Hiccup nodded, but he looked at their positions with a small frown.

"That can't be comfortable."

"It's not, but truthfully I'm hoping this is a progression thing. _Ideally, _I'd use something to restrain you and then probably suck you off until you were a lovely, twitchy mess."

His breath hitched, but Astrid _knew _he wasn't ready for that. With her hands, his pulse fluttering against his palm, there was something more human and more _Astrid _about it, whereas ropes or cuffs of any sort would be different. And, as Hiccup had demonstrated, he was capable of overpowering Astrid if he had to. He just chose not to. When he relaxed under her hands entirely, Astrid let go.

"I can, however, restrain you just with words and actions too."

"How?"

Astrid grinned, guiding his hands to the bars of her bedframe.

"Hold on to that. If your hands move, I stop."

With wide eyes and wet lips, a flush on his neck creeping upwards, Hiccup already looked the picture of debauched. And she hadn't really done much yet. Still, she gave him a chance to call time, to say he didn't want to be restrained. He didn't, rocking his hips upward to seek friction. His grip wasn't too tight on the frame, but she couldn't fault him for _that, _as she didn't want him hurting himself.

Astrid ground herself against his cock almost lazily, letting Hiccup feel her grow wetter and wetter without giving him what he so clearly wanted. Denial was a good look on him, made the cords of his neck stand out and drew sweet, needy whines from his mouth. There was only so long Astrid could deny herself when he was so very willing though, shifting to reach down and guide him in.

His grip went slack, but Hiccup remembered before Astrid had to remind him and shifted to hold a little tighter again. Smoothing her hands over his chest, Astrid leant down and kissed him, smiling when he responded oh so eagerly.

She moved over him slowly at first, building it up, watching Hiccup begin to devolve under her. The beast who prowled the streets was different to the animal in her bed, one beyond any control and the other that bent to her whims so willingly. Astrid loved both sides of him, dangerous as it was to do, and never more than when she saw Hiccup lose himself in pleasure. With his arms up over his head, Hiccup's head thrashed back and forth between the flexing, tensing muscles. Astrid could take him apart like that for days and never get bored, not when he forgot to try and quiet himself and let out those filthy, desperate sounds.

Astrid stroked his jaw, murmured how he was doing so well for her and he _glowed_ with the praise, twitching muscles of his abdomen flexing more as he tried to thrust with Astrid, rhythm a little clumsy in his hyper-aroused state. He gasped her name when Astrid squeezed his cock, utterly drunk on his every response and even more intoxicating was his submission, his _trust_ in Astrid.

She came atop him with a long, low moan of ecstacy, Hiccup barely holding out under her before his back bowed, hips jerking as he spilled, sticky and hot inside her. Astrid did so love messy sex.

"You can move your hands now love."

Hiccup lowered them, grimacing only a bit at his stiff shoulders before he wrapped his arms around Astrid, drawing her down for kisses and cuddles and cheeky hands on her breasts, contact he'd been denied by her restrictions.

After a messier round two, they cleaned up and dressed enough to lounge on her sofa, snuggling and enjoying each others company. The quiet did allow Astrid's mind to run a little wild, and with her brain-mouth filter still conspiciously absent, Astrid almost killed her boyfriend by making him choke on his drink.

"_Excuse_ me?"

Astrid waited for him to stop spluttering and put the cup down before she repeated herself.

"Like I said. I think we should give serious thought to seducing that Eret cop."

-HTTYD-

**I promise, Eret is important to the plot. I know some readers are wary but you're gonna have to trust me here.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Writing spooky one shots for Halloween, but I think Serialcup could be scary so he can sneak in with the spooks. I mean... he's always covered in blood, especially in this one.  
**

-HTTYD-

His girlfriend, Hiccup mused (and not for the first time), was definitely completely crazy. She probably had to be, to date a serial killer and all, but in between murders Hiccup thought he was pretty quiet and laid back, at least when he was home with his mom.

But _Astrid?_ Astrid was fire and forwardness, drawn to the danger buried inside Hiccup, a danger he only let out when he prowled at night, hunting for a deserving victim of his anger. She tempted the darkness within, all while looking sweet and innocent when she smiled at him.

Drawing his mind away from Astrid, Hiccup glanced around him, listening for anyone else around. It was pretty quiet, save for the sounds of late night drinking a few streets over. It wasn't what he was looking for, so Hiccup continued on. He'd overheard last time they were at the station that there were talks of more late night foot and car patrols, to look for him. The lack of funding that all public services suffered meant they were scrambling to make up necessary numbers to make such a thing effective, especially when there was concerns the Night Fury would just kill them if they found him. So they weren't exactly swimming in volunteers.

And then there were those he knew agreed with what he did. In a way. Maybe not the _Fury _part, but Hiccup did take bad people off the streets, and so-

He heard footsteps, slowing his breathing and gentling his own pace as he edged forward, mind closing down to only the hunt when he caught sight of them. His black outfit helped camoflauge him quite effectively in dark streets, and Hiccup knew how to keep to the shadows.

The man was stocky, but Hiccup was good at what he did and surprise certainly helped, slamming him violently into the wall and hearing a satisfying _crack _as skull impacted brick. Apparently as thick headed as he looked, it didn't completely floor him first time, but dizzy and disorientated, his victim had little recourse to stop Hiccup slamming him back again. Barely conscious, he still grunted in pain when Hiccup prodded the gash on the side of his shaved head.

_Good._

Curling his fingers around the blade of his knife, Hiccup used it to quickly rip at the mans jumper before he dragged the sharp blade in jagged lines, tattooed skin tearing in a satisfying way and he hoped it _hurt. _A limp hand tried to rise and fight back, but it soon retreated when Hiccup slashed his palm.

"Hold still, I'm not done."

If it wouldn't be a dumb mistake, Hiccup would have spit in his face. Or perhaps replicated what this particular bastard had done and urinated on him. But aside from not really wanting to try and piss in the street, he knew _that _could have left DNA behind.

Hiccup slashed the swastika tattoo across his chest more aggressively than the others, leaving the various marks of supposed 'supremacy' in bloodied ribbons. The guy was starting to make a lot of noise as he felt more and more pain, so Hiccup reluctantly decided he was done and traced over the shape of ribs, shoving the blade between them and twisting until he felt the life drain out.

Gloves bloody, Hiccup appreciated their excellent grip all the more as he groped for his ring, leaving his mark and throwing the tattered remnants of the mans shirt over him to cover the worst of the injuries for whoever found him. He'd been especially vindictive against the white supremacist, after all, who had a string of sexual assaults against women of all colours, and an even longer string of assaults against anyone else he didn't like.

Well, the world wasn't going to miss him.

Putting away his things, Hiccup headed back. He was a few streets over when he heard a dog bark, followed by an audible scream. Frowning, he began to turn back - was it going to be a busy night? - but when he strained his hearing, he heard the sounds of someone actually coming closer and bolted. He'd regret running when he got back, but being covered in blood meant he'd be too easy to find by a dog.

Hiccup didn't slow until he was almost home, wincing as pain lanced up through his leg. He normally didn't feel it until he was home, closing that part of his mind off until the Night Fury skin was peeled away to reveal Hiccup beneath. But then, he didn't normally run that much either. Astrid had offered to take him to the gym, but Hiccup baulked at the idea of public changing rooms and people watching him sweat in long sleeves and long trousers, asking why he didn't dress more suitably...

He popped painkillers as soon as he got his gloves and helmet off, dumping his clothes and waiting a few minutes for his pain to recede slightly before he got on with cleaning up. His mother, as usual, found him in the kitchen, frowning when she saw him sat in his wheelchair.

"Are you alright son?"

"Yeah, just had to run from a dog walker. I'll be fine."

Valka tsked, running her fingers through his damp hair.

"You need to be more careful."

"I know. I promise not to play with my food so much in future."

She rolled her eyes at his crass humour, moving so Hiccup could wheel his way around to make some tea, needing to come down from his kill before he'd be able to go to bed, and as she so often woke when he returned, Hiccup made his mother tea too.

His phone rang as Hiccup was just getting settled on the sofa with tea, sighing in relief at comfortable cushions. Picking it up from the side where it had been charging in waiting for him when he got back, Hiccup tapped _answer._

"Astrid?"

* * *

Hiccup might not have immediately agreed with her idea, but Astrid was still sure it was a good one.

And so, with a tip-off from Ruff, Astrid was putting the first step into play. Hiccup was off out for the night, so Astrid was free as a bird. Finishing the last part of a chapter in her next book, laden with some extra juicy Night Fury info taken from the latest letter from the elusive killer, Astrid pushed away from the desk and headed for a shower.

Hair done, clothes picked and just enough make-up to make her face pop more than he'd be used to, Astrid headed out to the bar she knew she'd find him in.

Sure enough, Inspector Eret Hunter was hunched over the bar, nursing a dark liquid in a tumbler, next to two empties. Astrid headed up to the bar to order a drink, waiting and glancing surreptitously along the bar. It took him a minute to realise it was her, doing a double take as Astrid was collecting her rum and coke. He looked at her for a good minute, but Astrid just walked past and went to join Ruff where her friend was waiting.

"No Snotface today?"

"Nah, we took a hot guy home last night and he's still feeling delicate, but I was horny so yanno, here I am. Are you sure I can't have him again?"

Astrid snorted. Oh, Ruff was a law unto herself. Her boyfriend obviously enjoyed as many perks as she did from their open relationship, and Astrid was glad Ruff found someone who accepted her in all her weird, wonderful glory.

"Yes. For one, I don't think he'd survive."

"But then he'd stop arresting you. Unless you _want_ him to cuff you, but I always had you down as a Domme."

Sipping her drink, Astrid saw Eret occasionally throwing a look over at them.

"You would be right. He's never cuffed me though, just 'in for questioning'."

"So why not say no?"

Astrid shrugged.

"I know I didn't do it, so when they drag me in, ironically they are just giving me more details not available to the public while getting nothing from me."

Details she _could_ get from her boyfriend, but that was Astrid's little secret. Ruff downed her next shot, pouting.

"Well, either you go hit on him or I will. Wait. Don't you have a boyfriend now?"

Astrid raised an eyebrow at Ruff.

"You're one to talk."

"Well, excuse me for not knowing your man doesn't mind. Either that or he's bad in bed and you gotta get it somewhere."

"Oh no, he's _definitely _not bad in bed" Astrid hummed to herself, thinking of Hiccup all flushed and quivering under her "but you're assuming I definitely plan to bang the cop."

"In a skirt like that, it's either him or me you're trying to get lucky with, and I don't swing that way. Much."

Snorting, Astrid shook her head.

"You're safe, don't worry."

"So it _is _the cop. Go get him before he gives himself whiskey dick, damnit."

Astrid rolled her eyes, draining the rest of her drink. She wasn't expecting to bed Eret that night. He'd had too much to drink already, and he was gonna need his sleep for the morning he would be having, based on the way Hiccup spat the description of his intended victim for the night. Astrid certainly had no sympathy for them.

"You. Stay."

Ruff would definitely walk up and offer him a threesome, and Astrid would have to kill her. Which wouldn't look good in front of a cop who kept investigating her for murder.

"Spoilsport. Go, I'll offer moral support from here."

There was every chance Eret would just bolt, but Astrid figured it was definitely worth a shot. He saw her heading over, and knocked back the rest of his glass. It was clearly still a bit sharp, his face scrunching in discomfort before smoothing out.

"Fancy seeing you here."

Eret blinked, looking her up and down. Astrid knew he checked her out anyway, but he normally saw her after she'd been dragged out of work or picked up on her way to get pastry. Not wearing a skirt that showed off her thighs, or makeup to bring out her eyes.

"I don't think I should talk to you."

"I think that ship sailed when you tried to spy on my boyfriend" Astrid turned to the bar, ordering another drink "and besides, you're clearly not on the clock."

Eret frowned, but he didn't move when Astrid inched closer. Not too much, but enough he probably knew it was intentional.

"Still, hardly professional."

"Why? Are there rules against talking to someone you don't really think is a suspect but have nobody else to ask?"

Her drink arrived, Astrid taking a mouthful while Eret looked like he was considering leaving. He didn't, slowly sitting back on the stool he'd obviously been warming for a while.

"Do you get a kick out of all this?"

"In a way. I think it's an awful waste of police time, but that's on you, not me. I get a close up of police procedure, which is good for my books. Are you still my designated reader?"

Eret nodded slowly. Astrid grinned.

"Did you like chapter seven?"

There was an illicit alleyway romp in the latest book; not explicit, but it left no doubt it was happening. Eret swallowed thickly, clearly wrong-footed by Astrid.

"Don't you have a boyfriend?"

"You know I do, you check him out every time he picks me up from the station and brings you coffee. Have your colleagues asked about that yet?"

The music in the bar wasn't too loud, but they did have to stay quite close to hear one another. Eret opened his mouth to answer, before his eyes dropped and his head turned. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, opening up a text with a scowl. Astrid caught sight of it.

_"Answer your phone, asshole. New Night Fury vic, still warm. Bring a strong stomach."_

"I have to go."

Astrid placed a hand on his arm, making Eret look up at her.

"Don't drive drunk. And when your colleagues try to call me in, I'll have a good alibi, don't you think?"

And with that, Astrid left him there, waiting to see him leave before she bade goodnight to a disappointed Ruff.

"I thought you were in there!"

"Duty calls, I guess."

"A dead body? Well, that does come out over dates."

Bemused, Astrid escaped soon after and immediately grabbed her phone to call her boyfriend.

"Astrid?"

"He just left. That was fast!"

"Unexpected late night dog walker found the body."

"It's always the dog walkers. How are you feeling?"

He wasn't up to talking for too long, elaborating about pain medication and so Astrid left him to go to sleep.

"Love you."

"Love you too."

His voice was already starting to go slurred and soft with exhaustion, but Astrid still hung up with a smile. He was adorable.

-HTTYD-

**As I was writing this, daylight savings time kicked in so I did in fact time travel an hour backwards.**


	22. Chapter 22

**YouYou098 - yes, he did use the axe. Chapter 11.**

-HTTYD-

"So where were you?"

"Drinking. Hence the taxi. Didn't hear my phone over the music."

Eret hadn't been _that _drunk, but the sight of the guy carved up on the ground definitely finished sobering him up. He'd had to chase off his taxi driver before he headed over, not wanting the guy lingering over the ever-present lure of a Night Fury scene. And it definitely was; he could see the brand,

"I heard running, and Rex here could definitely smell something."

"But you didn't actually see them?"

"No. Just the footprints."

The footprints didn't help them much - they stopped before leading anywhere too useful, and the boot make was already known to them. Still, they could work out stride length and maybe pick up some trace material from the prints themselves.

"Kinda puts paid to the idea Haddock is the Night Fury, huh?"

"What you on about Teeny?"

"Well, he doesn't look the type to run to me. Plus, he..."

Eret ignored Teeny rambling on as he knelt down, gloved hand lifting the shredded fabric up to examine the injuries. There was visible vital response on most of them, meaning the victim had been alive when they were inflicted.

"He was tortured."

"Well, I'm guessing the Night Fury considered it fair play. This guy has a trail of his own."

The torn up tattoos on his arms and chest and stomach weren't so obliterated the police couldn't have a good guess at what they were. Eret squinted, trying to see the face through the blood and swelling; he'd had his head smashed into the wall, clearly.

"Huh. I've had run ins with this one myself. He asked me once 'what I was', cus he couldn't work out if I was just white and tan or a 'foreigner'."

Teeny snorted.

"You got off lightly, he was usually more aggressive."

Eret left Teeny to finish interrogating the dog walker and caught a ride back to the station, where he downed enough water to drown a fish and followed it up with a strong coffee and an emergency energy bar from his desk drawer.

"Are we bringing Hofferson in to ask about how she feels toward white supremacists?"

Looking up from his coffee, Eret saw Teeny stood in the door.

"How long would you say the body had been there when it was found?"

"Minutes. Me and the coroner got there before it had an hour to cool down according to body temp. Why?"

Eret frowned, trying to work out how long Astrid had been in the bar, and whether it was feasible to look like _that _fresh from a crime scene that would have been a tight trip even if she had driven straight to the bar without stopping to clean up.

"Just wondering."

If he told them it couldn't have been Astrid, they lost their best - and to most, _only _viable suspect. Eret didn't have enough to put Henry Haddock forward as the replacement suspect, and if they had _no _suspect, his bosses would be breathing even harder down his neck.

So he kept quiet for the moment.

"Lets leave it for now until we've gone over the scene and the body. If we keep bringing her in just to have her walk out laughing at us, we're putting ourselves in the line for a harassment suit. She's not going anywhere."

"Fair. You look like shit."

"Thanks Teeny."

Left with his work and his thoughts again - Teeny was going to grab his thirty minutes before he tried to do anything - Eret sighed, leaning back in his chair and scrubbing a hand over his face. He needed a shave.

What _was _the thing with Astrid in the bar? Had she gone there looking for him? It seemed unlikely, as she'd headed over to her friend. Her friend Eret had a few memories of. Had the friend told Astrid he was there? Why would she have done that?

And had Astrid been... _flirting_ with him? Or was that some kind of twisted wishful thinking?

Gods, his head hurt.

"Where you going?"

He was spotted leaving, which was good as it meant he could tell someone rather than have Teeny call and wake him in an hour.

"Home. I need to sleep off the drink and get a shower, else I'm gonna be no good to anyone. I'll be back in a few hours."

Eret was asleep before his head hit the pillow, but he paid for the excessive consumption of water and coffee in another way when he had to get up to piss four times in three hours. Feeling a little less awful by then, he reluctantly stayed awake and went for that much needed shower, feeling infinitely more human after he was shaved, clean and in fresh clothes.

That didn't stop him wondering about Astrid though. She'd seemed awful genuine in that brief instance when she touched his arm, warned him against the danger of driving drunk. It wasn't as though he'd planned to drive - he hadn't even driven to the bar, knowing he planned to drink, but Astrid had said it in that "be careful, take care of yourself" way.

Of course, for all he knew Astrid was going to seduce him to her house where the Night Fury waited to deal with him. Letting Astrid get under his skin was playing with fire...

Eret wondered if that thought was going to be enough to stop him.

* * *

Hiccup's concentration face was so cute. Astrid fought not to distract him from his drawing just to tell him that.

"Like this?"

He turned the sketchpad around, displaying the image to Astrid. Hiccup kindly turned some of her wonderings to actual pictures, envisioning them with his artistic mind so she could truly imagine the scene she wanted to write out.

"That's perfect."

"Want me to colour it?"

Astrid shook her head, happy as could be with the linework and shading alone. The body on the ground looked battered and broken, blood splattered over the surrounding area. There was no killer in the picture, save for the shadow cast by a streetlight in the very corner, which was only identified by the drip of blood falling from their fingers.

"No, this is exactly what I needed, thanks."

He smiled, nodding for Astrid to show it to Valka, who agreed it was an excellent drawing.

"You should do this for a living, it would really liven up bookstores."

Hiccup shrugged, shaking his head.

"It would be _murder_ on my hands, I make exceptions for you."

Astrid snickered at his emphasis, putting the pad aside so she could go cuddle Hiccup. He kissed her hair, stroking her back lightly as they snuggled. Seeming less suspicious of Astrid after several months of her knowing Hiccup's... hobby, and no hint of trouble from it, Valka smiled softly over at them. It was a nice change from that tight-lipped observation. She appeared genuinely happy her son was happy and in love; it was probably not something they'd ever expected for him, given the big secret Hiccup had to keep and their reticence to trust anyone after the awful things they'd suffered.

But it did look as though Astrid was forming her own little niche there.

"I gotta go help mom take a bath, want to go wait in my room?"

"Sure. Take your time, I'm gonna do some writing notes."

Hiccup nodded with a smile, waiting for his door to close behind Astrid before he went off to help Valka. Astrid used the sketch Hiccup had drawn for inspiration as she plotted out the scenes in question, admiring yet again his amazing artistic ability. He really was one of a kind.

He was gone for the better part of an hour, but he did bring snacks and commented that Valka had wanted to eat before she went to bed. Astrid happily recieved food and drink before they cuddled to watch nonsense on Hiccup's laptop.

"They didn't take you in for questioning again. Think he told them you were with him?"

"Probably not. He needs someone to put in my place if he throws out the idea I'm the top suspect. Plus I bet he's probably confused. Which is part of the fun."

Hiccup shrugged, adorably affectionate tonight as he snuggled Astrid's back, nuzzling her hair and spooning her with no real hesitation for contact, which he still struggled with from time to time, even though he had clearly grown much more comfortable with Astrid over the months. He could even fall asleep pretty easily with her now, whereas before Astrid knew he'd always been awake while she slept, even if it meant being awake days at a time. Now she got to see him doze off, face smooth and relaxed in slumber (mostly), sometimes with him snuggling into her side or lying on her lap.

Very reluctant to leave his adorable self, Astrid finally pulled herself out of Hiccup's snuggly embrace. He grumbled, but let her go and got up to drive her home.

"Try and get some sleep tonight babe."

He nodded, tiredness visible on his features in the stark brightness from the car light.

"I will."

Hiccup kissed her goodbye, watched her to her door before he drove off. Astrid missed him holding her as she went to bed, but he texted her to let her know he was heading to sleep, so Astrid contented herself with the knowledge he was getting some much-needed rest.

The thing Astrid was expecting finally came about; while Hiccup hadn't killed anyone that week, she was still asked in to talk about her writing.

"These are details only the killer could know."

They pointed out several references Astrid had slipped in to the writing, and she nodded with a serene smile.

"I agree."

"So, do you have an explanation for how _you _know them?"

"I do."

Astrid tried not to giggle, but watching Eret grow tense - he _knew _it wasn't her - as his colleagues grew more irate with her was quite fun.

"Which is what?"

"The Night Fury told me."

There was a tangible ripple through the room, Eret's mind visibly turning over while his colleagues leant forward.

"You know who they are?"

"No."

"Then how did they tell you anything?"

Astrid reached to the stack of her books waiting on the table as their 'evidence', plucking the one she needed from the pile and opening the cover.

"They seemed to notice my little shout out, and started writing to me."

As she predicted, they were stunned and immediately demanded the letters, and an explanation for why Astrid had never volunteered the information.

"The letters were ended with a threat not to go to the police. I'm not pissing off a serial killer."

Astrid kept her serial killer very happy, thank you very much. Not that she _said _that.

"We're going to need those letters."

"Why? They're mine, and I doubt you're going to willingly give them back."

Astrid had every intention of handing them over, but it was fun to annoy them. Especially the skinny one in the corner who never spoke, but had so much suspicion on their face Astrid half-expected them to blurt out an accusation of her making the letters up herself.

"We'll process them and make copies, you can fill out a form to get the originals back if you must."

Eret offered, and Astrid made sure to smile sweetly at him. He blinked, staying quiet.

"Fine. I'm bringing them in though, it's bad enough you keep coming to my work, you're not invading my home too."

"We'll need your fingerprints for comparison, to isolate them from any the writer may have left."

Astrid knew Hiccup only handled the letters and even the typewriter itself with gloves on, so they would _only _find _her_ prints. And even if there was a minute trace of Hiccup, she could explain it as not-suspicious contamination by her boyfriend being in her home or even handling the letters when she showed them to him. They gave her a bag to put the letters in, and requested she bring them within the next twenty four hours.

"Oh, hey babe."

Hiccup had arrived to pick her up while she was being interrogated, and Astrid noticed how he favoured one side, affecting his limp more under the watchful eye of the police.

"Everything alright Astrid?"

"Yeah. They just want to see my letters."

He actually looked surprised, nodding slowly and looking around. She walked up and hugged him, turning to see where Hiccup's eyes had landed, saw him sharing a curious look with Inspector Hunter, who was obviously trying to work something out about him.

"We need to print her before you leave."

"_Her _has a name."

Hiccup quipped back, scowling. Astrid squeezed him gently, not wanting Hiccup to let on he had any sort of temper, especially when it was generally so confined to certain situations.

"It's ok babe, they're just incompetent and annoyed. Let's get this over with."

Eret stayed behind, and Astrid longed to be a fly on the wall watching he and Hiccup facing off against each other in loaded silence. They took her prints both digitally and with the horrid ink, which was difficult to scrub off even with the wipes she was offered to clean her hands.

"Anything else?"

"No, you can leave."

Relieved, Astrid went back to Hiccup. Both he and his watchful police escort looked over at her, Hiccup's face saying _everything alright?_ to which she nodded. He let her help him up from the chair, leaning against her when Astrid had her arms around his waist.

"Your leg hurt?"

"A little. Ready to go?"

"Yeah. Do you need to come back?"

"Tomorrow. Back to yours?"

Hiccup nodded.

"Yeah, can't leave mom too long."

He was smart, reminding anyone nearby of his prosthetic and his caring for his mother; it kept suspicion off Hiccup, not that much lingered on him. It was only the one person who _really _suspected Hiccup, and he was also the one who clearly had a whole other level of fascination with the couple standing in front of him.

Astrid could still feel his eyes on them as they left.

-HTTYD-

**Actual human disasters, all of them.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Slowly playing catch up...  
**

**I'm not going to explain in author notes, but all questions about Eret should be answered over the next few chapters. If your question is not answered after a few chapters, _then_ I'll answer it. Patience.**

-HTTYD-

Astrid knew that their 'processing' her letters was going to ruin them a little, her own fingerprints brought up with various chemical agents adhering. At least she knew where to get more Night Fury letters.

And while it was basically the intention the cops eventually get hold of the letters, to push suspicion off Astrid and on to some mystery stalker-type rather than her mild-mannered boyfriend, it was still irksome to her that they had legal means with which to force her to hand over the letters.

Eret was the one waiting for her when Astrid turned up the next day with the letters, so keen to get his hands on them he almost forgot to put on gloves before he touched them. Hiccup wasn't with her, as Valka had a doctors appointment to renew her prescriptions so Astrid was just dropping the letters in on her way to work.

"When do I get them back?"

"When we're done. I can arrange to have somebody call you when you can come in for them if you like."

Astrid nodded.

"That works. I don't know what you expect to get out of them though."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the Night Fury has never left any evidence before."

Eret inclined his head as though conceding her point.

"Well, they've also never reached out before. Quite often, these sorts of letters turn out to be a mistake."

Astrid really, _really _doubted that when it came to Hiccup's letters, but she could hardly say that to Eret. He placed them carefully into evidence packs, then gave Astrid what she assumed was some kind of voucher to say she'd given them in and that they were hers.

"If you get any more of these, you should let us know... also, I have to ask. Do you want protection?"

"Protection? For what?"

He looked at Astrid like she was an idiot.

"Well, a serial killer has taken a special interest in you. You could be in danger."

"I can handle myself. I spend enough time here without taking cops home with me."

Astrid made sure to throw Eret a quick smirk, quite sure he'd understand the implications and enjoying the way he quickly averted his eyes. Her phone vibrated in her pocket, and Astrid smiled to herself when she saw Hiccup's name, sticking her tongue out mentally at his text.

_"Are you upsetting police again?"_

She tapped out a plea of innocence in response, then turned her attentions back to Eret.

"So, was there anything else?"

"No. Thank you for bringing these in."

"So long as I get them back. Great inspirations and all."

Eret frowned.

"Is there any way to convince you not to put any of these not-public details into your books?"

"Well..." Astrid placed a hand on his desk and leaned in, watching Eret swallow heavily "no. I have bills to pay, and having the interest of a serial killer is doing wonders for my sales. It's not my fault your best evidence for identifying a serial killer is whether or not they know something you didn't put in the papers. A bunch of this stuff is on the internet anyway."

"It is?"

Astrid nodded.

"Serial killers fascinate people. There's a lot of talk. Although, I would appreciate you keeping that the Night Fury has an interest in me quiet" Astrid knew saying that where everyone was listening basically _guaranteed_ that soon, the news of it would spread "I don't need jealous groupies hunting me down, yanno?"

Realising she was going to be late for work, Astrid left soon after, ensuring she threw Eret a smile on her way out and enjoying his disarmed expression.

She called Hiccup on her way home from work and filled him on the morning trip to the police station, as he'd been asleep when she was on her way _to _work that morning.

"How was it?"

"Eret was so excited he almost forgot gloves. I think he's almost as fixated on the Night Fury as I am."

That sentence earned Astrid a weird look from somebody else at the bus stop, to which she stuck out her tongue like any mature adult.

"Well, technically that's his job. Although personally I prefer your fixations."

Astrid giggled. Oh, she loved her ever-so-slightly-dangerous boyfriend.

"So you should. I'm gonna write tonight, but I get off work early tomorrow so want to do something?"

"Sure. My place or yours?"

"I'll let you know, depends how noisy I'm feeling."

Hiccup choked slightly, and Astrid could practically _hear _him rolling his eyes much the same as the rude bus stop eavesdropper. Exchanging farewells with Hiccup, Astrid hung up her phone and stared pointedly at the eavesdropper, who cleared their throat loudly and looked away awkwardly.

She consulted with Hiccup a couple of times, but mostly spent her evening buried elbow deep in fictional bodies and blood, then ate a couple of the cupcakes that somehow were _always there _as a late replacement for dinner, regretted it when she felt sick and went to bed.

"Did you get some good writing done?"

"Yeah. Nice bit of inspiration from that one you beat with a brick."

"You're definitely _home _right now aren't you?"

Hiccup asked, obviously concerned she was speaking his secrets out in public.

"Yes, idiot. I wouldn't want you to get arrested. I doubt we'd get conjugal visits."

He groaned.

"Well, nice to know you want me to stay out of prison for the sake of your sex life."

"Aww, you know I love you, I just also love your cock. For later, how about you come over here for a bit, then we'll go back to have dinner with your mom on the evening and stay there for the night?"

"Works for me. Mom wants stir fry for dinner, that alright?"

"Yeah. I better get going, I finish at two."

Hiccup promised to come pick her up before they hung up and Astrid took herself off to work. Hiccup was a lovely sight to behold when he picked her up - carrying pastry and coffee, because he knew when Astrid finished early she didn't always get lunch. Her colleagues ooohed and ahhed at her sweet, cute boyfriend.

_Oh, if only you knew girls..._

"You could not be more perfect if you ejaculated chocolate... ok, _other than _if you could do that. That would be amazing."

He blinked a few times, then shook his head, bemused.

"Wow. Ok. I have no answer for that."

Giggling around a mouthful of pastry, Astrid shrugged and chewed while Hiccup gave a little shake of the head again and started his car up. When they got back, Astrid immediately ordered Hiccup in the direction of her bed, her obedient little serial killer doing so while Astrid went to the bathroom before she joined him. He was staring at the bed, thinking face on.

"Hey, are you ok?"

Hiccup looked up, nodding.

"Yeah, why?"

"Just checking. You looked lost in thought."

"Nothing much, just waiting for you."

He smiled, reaching for Astrid as soon as she was in range, leaning up to kiss her and smiling when Astrid slid her fingers up into his hair. It had taken a while for him to stop tensing at that touch - he'd had his hair yanked cruelly as a boy, and though Valka stroked his hair sometimes, she was obviously different. Now he just hummed and leaned into Astrid's touch, so soft and trusting with her it was sometimes hard to think of how he was also someone so capable of absolutely destroying another human.

Though, with Hiccup's penchant for murdering horrible people, Astrid supposed 'human' was more of an anatomical than a moral descriptor.

There was still occasional tension if her hands brushed somewhere that caught him off guard, and sometimes Hiccup was just not in the mood to be touched at all and hand-holding was the most he could offer. But he had come _so _far from being terrified to even let Astrid near him, and he no longer tried to hide his scars in shame, didn't watch Astrid trace fingers or kisses over them as though confused or nervous about letting her.

And they were still exploring new things, finding Hiccup's limits without rushing him. He _liked _being held down by her, but could only wear restraints for a while; Astrid had kept her word and used them during blowjobs, and Hiccup seemed quite happy with that arrangement. Astrid certainly was, adoring how he squirmed and whined and strained against his bonds. And if they left aches in his wrists and hands, Astrid kissed them better and massaged them until the pain eased. Which often made Hiccup smile, and Astrid loved that.

Running her hand over his still-clothed chest, Astrid gave him a bright smile and let her fingers brush the top of his belt.

"So, anything in particular you feel like doing today?"

* * *

"You alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good."

He appreciated her checking in, letting his eyes fall closed as Astrid rubbed his back. There was never a chance his scars would all vanish, but Astrid had made a good point that massaging them would reduce some of the tightness and discomfort he felt, and more than that, she _offered _to massage them for him. Hiccup struggled to just relax in to it, but Astrid made sure to speak regularly so he could hear her voice, hold on to the knowledge it was her, that he was safe despite the vulnerable position.

"How's that?"

"It's... nice."

And it was. Hiccup quietly reflected as Astrid touched him, knowing he'd never have reached such a point of comfort without her; even when she wasn't there, he felt less desperate to cover his scars (though he _obviously _still covered them in public). He had a sort of... quiet confidence in himself thanks to Astrid. It was hard to doubt somebody so very forward and blatant about how much she wanted him, physically and emotionally. Even if she was still completely mad, he chuckled to himself, thinking of how she pressed him for details of his killings.

Finished, Astrid gave his backside a quick squeeze before she clambered off his back, told him to roll over so she could do his chest next.

"Did that hurt?"

Hiccup forced back the instinctive panic - even now, Astrid didn't push him to talk about _how_ he got his scars - and realised she was indicating his tattoo.

"Yeah, but compared to everything else... easy. Why?"

"Toying with the idea of getting one myself. I've wanted to for ages, just never settled on what I want. Still haven't totally settled, but saw yours and thought I'd ask."

Nodding, Hiccup felt her fingers begin to work over his front, massaging cream into the scars and encouraging the tight skin to loosen up gradually. It _was _helping, even though she'd only been doing it for a little while, as he noticed they 'pulled' less when he stretched. He made a mental note to offer to do the same for his mom, if she was up to it, though Hiccup knew it wouldn't miraculously take away her pain.

"Well, that's you done for today, unless you want me to do your legs too?"

Hiccup shook his head.

"Not today. I'm feeling good, don't want to risk it."

Nodding in understanding, Astrid got up to wash her hands while Hiccup settled in to his more relaxed body and waited for her to come back. She did, handing him a light shirt with long sleeves to put on so he wouldn't stick to everything with his skin covered in a film of moisturiser before she snuggled into his side.

"So, have they given you back my letters?"

"Not yet. Eret said he'd make sure I got a call when I can have them back, but it's only been a few days since I gave them in and I made sure my fingerprints were all over them, so they would get really excited and then realise its allllll me."

Hiccup couldn't help laughing at her smug smile, his girlfriend visibly smug about wasting police time _and _helping ensure suspicions stayed off of him.

"You're incorrigible."

"And you love me for it. Are you going anywhere soon?"

He understood the question for what it was, and had to reluctantly move from snuggles to check.

"Uh, yeah, someone will be out in a couple of days."

When he first saw that sparky, smart blonde on the bus, Hiccup never imagined having a long-term girlfriend he could quite calmly tell about plans to kill somebody over the next week like they were discussing a weekend trip. _How _he had ended up with the slightly terrifying and utterly perfect woman beside him, he still didn't know, but he knew he was so very lucky to have her.

"Have you finished another letter?"

"Almost. I'll finish it tomorrow, my hands are sore."

Astrid held her hands out expectantly, and so Hiccup let her rub at his hands to try and soothe the pain somewhat. Even if the pain itself didn't dissipate, Hiccup appreciated her effort and care so much he always felt better regardless.

"You should probably try and take a break soon, keep your timeline unpredictable."

"We'll see."

Having picked up a few discarded empties with gloved hands over the last few days whenever he saw them, Hiccup was well armed for that particular trip as he paced the street, waiting, waiting, waiting...

Finally, he saw them. They didn't see him, lurking back in the shadows clad head to toe in black, but Hiccup reckoned they were a little worried they were being followed by the occasional glance back. Or perhaps they had an inkling of being on his hit list, and were worried about making it home alive.

_"Should have thought of that before, shouldn't you?_" Hiccup thought to himself as he crept along, fingers curling around the neck of the first bottle - covered in someone elses DNA, someone elses fingerprints, contaminated by the ground where he'd found it. A treasure trove of misleading and _useless _information.

Smirking under his helmet as they turned toward the sound of his footsteps, Hiccup took his quickest detour; he knew the streets so well after so many nights, they were on his playground whether they knew it or not. They yelped at almost running right in to Hiccup, faced with the Night Fury and not much light, and not enough time to decide fight or flight before the bottle cracked against their skull.

Hiccup didn't care if they were male, female or something else entirely. They all broke and bled the same.

The second impact shattered the bottle into pieces, but didn't completely incapacitate. He'd forgotten to anticipate just how damned _loud _shattering glass might be, pulling the second bottle out of his other pocket and repeating until their face streamed blood, obscuring vision, choking them when they gasped for breath against the pain.

"You're getting off lucky."

He muttered before a shard of broken glass finished the job, left embedded at the end of a jagged tear in their neck that poured crimson, a final death rattle escaping before they slumped to the ground. Hiccup took a minute to strain his hearing, but couldn't hear anyone nearby just yet. After the dog walker incident, he was more wary than ever.

It took him a little time to find a spot, but Hiccup straightened up and gazed down upon the body and the brand, glancing around once more before he put his things away, dropped the third bottle next to the body since he didn't need it anymore.

"Good luck with that."

He chuckled at the thought of the cops finding it, thinking they'd gotten _so _lucky; Hiccup had written all about that little trick he had planned in advance in the letter he dropped off at Astrid's house on the way home, hoped they had already gotten some kind of forensic match to DNA or prints only to find that the information was utterly worthless.

Reclining on the sofa the next morning, Hiccup waited for himself to hit the news, and for Astrid to call him when she was done with her morning run. His mother was dozing next to him, cup of tea she'd asked for completely forgotten. Hiccup didn't hold it against her, just glad she was resting.

"Is it on the news yet?"

Astrid asked, still out of breath when she called him, clearly _just _in from her run.

"Yep. Enjoy your letter?"

"Yep. Was that all about last night?"

Hiccup nodded out of habit, then remembered she couldn't see him.

"Yes, so they get this big wave of optimism that I got sloppy, and then discover it was all planned that way. Since they think the letters were me making a mistake, they're obviously looking for more. I look forward to knowing that hope was crushed."

"Evil. I love it."

He snorted at Astrid's response. Utterly incorrigible.

"Of course you do."

-HTTYD-

**Oh lookie, an update at last! November has been a very slow month for me, I apologise.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Yeah, I kinda got sidetracked writing Frozen fics but hey we're here now.**

**By the way, this is that Hicretstrid-containing chapter. If you aren't down with that, it's cool, anything related to story development will be covered again in the future. But this was always part of the plot.**

-HTTYD-

Eret couldn't describe the way he felt at that moment as anything other than _hunted._

He'd never been more certain that the Night Fury was looking right at him.

And he'd never cared less.

The corded strength in hands that held him down, the distracting, misleading sweetness of softer lips on his own. If anybody found out he'd even _kissed _either of them, Eret's job was over and he risked being in trouble himself for breaking about a dozen serious rules. Not to mention accusations of tampering or leaking information...

Astrid pressed more firmly against him, and those thoughts left his mind. The only thoughts left behind were how intrigued he was by the two of them, and how terrifyingly turned on he was when Astrid bit his lip, smirking into the kiss when he gasped.

How had he ended up here again? Where even was _here?_

"You're thinking too loud, stop it."

"Sorry."

Eret apologised before he even thought about it; Astrid just had something about her that he felt compelled to obey. And, by the way he moved under her gaze, acted only when prompted by whispers in his ear, her boyfriend felt exactly the same. Not what he'd expected, truthfully, but there was something instinctive and natural about the way Astrid tended to her lover, as though knowing he needed the push but trusted her never to go too far - there was no fear, no unsurety in his eyes when he approached Eret next.

"Stay."

Astrid only had to say a single word, nudge at Eret's shoulder to keep him there. Hiccup (as he refused to answer to anything else and _Haddock _felt too formal) was defintiely shyer, less experienced or perhaps just new to _men _in general... but he still kissed Eret slowly, learning the pressure, a faint scrape of stubble and the lingering warm amber of what Eret thought might have been yesterdays aftershave on his jumper making it a wholly different experience to the forceful, animalistic kisses Astrid gave.

He'd been pretty sure Astrid was hitting on him, for a while now. Eret wasn't sure if bringing him coffee and making sarcastic remarks meant Hiccup was doing the same, but it was kind of hard to think otherwise. When Hiccup pulled away, he immediately looked to Astrid who ran her fingers over his hair, gave him a smile that seemed to bolster and reassure him. Eret was pretty sure he'd not be there without his girlfriend, but the look on Astrid's face equally spoke volumes about how she wouldn't push her boyfriend into something he didn't _want _to do.

If Eret ended up dead the next day, as he'd half expected to before Astrid pounced, there'd be a story of how he was _lured _somewhere, but the truth was he'd gone far, _far _too willingly. All the times he'd read about some idiot who became fixated by a serial killer and scoffed... but his intrigue had Eret walking right into the lions den.

"He likes it when I'm rough" Astrid commented as she ran her fingers through her boyfriends hair, tugged until his head was lifted up and back "but he doesn't know you, so you play nice."

Eret could only nod as he watched, Astrid adding a fresh bruise to match the ones already fading along the length of Hiccup's throat. He was so compliant, leaning in to her touch despite it causing him pain. When Astrid released his skin she turned his head, kissed him deeply until Hiccup whined low in his throat and Eret couldn't help but love the sound.

"Take off your clothes."

Astrid... well, there was no other word than _ordered, _but Eret didn't have any thought of resisting anyway. He wasn't wearing his uniform - that would have been _too _weird, even for the surreal situation. Hiccup watched him more closely than Astrid did, as though... curious? The scrutiny was intense, and Eret wasn't sure if he should feel shy or be concerned Hiccup was looking for his most accessible arteries.

_What the fuck was he doing there? _

"Shh, it's ok babe."

Astrid was soothing her lover, who was looking _very _tense about something all of a sudden. The something turned out to be Astrid trying to take off his hooded jumper, something Eret had never seen the other man without. As soon as Astrid managed to cajole him into taking it off, Eret understood why. While Hiccup's eyes were concealed, Astrid held Eret's gaze and made a very clear _shush _motion with her mouth.

Eret didn't think he'd ever seen so many scars on one person, especially not in such a small space and from so many different sources. And that was just on Hiccup's forearms... were there more?

It didn't look as though he'd find out; Hiccup let out a low plea to Astrid that Eret probably wasn't meant to hear.

"No more."

Astrid nodded, brushing her lips over his temple and rubbing Hiccup's back until some of the tension eased and Hiccup managed to look at Eret again. Swallowing thickly, Eret resolved not to stare.

"Well, you're gonna have to undo your bottoms love, but that's it."

Hiccup nodded at his girlfriend, who kissed his neck while she undid his button and fly one handed, then let her hand disappear beneath fabric before doing something that had her lovers hips twitching forward, soft groans escaping his mouth. Hiccup was quite sensual to watch, even though he didn't seem to be _trying _to be, and he only closed his eyes when Astrid's arm was around him.

Eret tried not to shift impatiently, cock twitching with want as he watched the two before him. Astrid muttered something Eret didn't quite catch, but he got the gist when Hiccup turned around and began undressing her seconds later. Astrid was _not _shy, winking over at Eret as Hiccup unhooked her bra and peeled it away.

"Hey, we've been leaving Eret out a bit."

Astrid commented, Hiccup looking quite put out when his girlfriends bare skin was no longer under his hands. The blonde beckoned Eret closer, blue eyes glittering as she reached for Hiccup's waistband and exposed his erect cock. Eret looked up at Hiccup, who was watching him closely with dark eyes and flushed cheeks, tongue coming out to wet his lips. He nodded to Eret's silent question, and Eret had a brief thought of _no going back _before he took Hiccup into his mouth.

The hand that went to his hair was Astrid's, and when Eret peered up he saw the other two were kissing, Hiccup's hips twitching back and forth in time with Eret's mouth moving over his cock. He was thicker than Eret had expected, imagined in those moments he would never admit to when things like _this _had crossed his mind.

"Having fun babe?"

Hiccup answered only with a vague, incoherent noise, but Eret had never had any complaints before and Hiccup was leaking precum in his mouth, so he took the vague noise as a good sign and continued. The hand not supporting his weight on the bed slid down, palming his cock as urgent need grew. Astrid nudged his arm and shook her head, and Hiccup actually _laughed _at the situation.

"She's evil. You get used to it."

Astrid nipped playfully at her boyfriends throat in retaliation for his comment, still wrapped around his back and gripping Eret's hair. He felt like something of a novelty plaything for the couple, and wondered if that should have bothered him more. Although really, there were _far_ bigger concerns Eret should have had before he let himself end up there, and they'd all fled his mind almost the second Astrid kissed him.

Hiccup whined when Astrid stilled Eret, already a picture of lust and debauchery with his panting breaths and ruddy face, jeans hanging open just enough to expose himself. The blondes whispers in Eret's ear had him agreeing a little too keenly, if her smirk was anything to go by, but Eret was already so desperate for _something _that he didn't care. He rolled himself on to his front, gasping when small, nimble fingers touched him intimately and realising a little too late that he'd turned his back on them far too easily.

"It's lucky we even have those" Astrid commented as Hiccup pulled condoms from her bedside, having already handed her the lube she used to open Eret up and press her fingers down in ways that made him dizzy "Hiccup and I don't usually use them."

Fleeting thoughts of whether what Astrid was doing was a regular activity for the couple were chased out by those sharp, hot darts of pleasure, his body twitching when her fingers left him empty. She wiped her hand before moving to Hiccup, kissing her boyfriend as she took the condoms from him and sheathed his cock herself, stroking him over the latex and Hiccup thrust into her grip, whined against her lips. She stopped to whisper something to him, and Hiccup answered in equally low tones.

Eret had little doubt he was the first man Hiccup had ever touched; he was too curious, too unsure without Astrid there to guide him but he seemed quite happy to feel the snug grip of muscles as he inched inside Eret slowly. A hand on his shoulder gripped fiercely tight, the first slip Eret got that showed there was a hidden strength in the slender frame of the other man.

Satisfied Hiccup was alright, Astrid circled Eret and laid under him, less hesitant, no nerves in her as she rolled the condom over his cock and guided Eret's larger body over hers until he felt soft heat yielding. Astrid reached for Eret's shoulder too, and he felt her lace her fingers through Hiccup's there, eyes on her boyfriend before they came back to Eret.

It was Hiccup who set their rhythm from his standing leverage - a distant part of Eret's rapidly-shutting-down brain hoped the pressure didn't hurt with his prosthetic - and each of his thrusts into Eret pushed Eret into Astrid. He could do nothing but rock back and forth between them, something a little darker than simple mischief in Astrid's eyes as she watched Eret let them take him apart piece by piece, lost somewhere in the haze of sensations and feeling a terrible thrill, knowing that he shouldn't be there but would have chosen to go back all over again.

Astrid's free hand wound through Eret's hair, tugged harshly as she kissed him roughly, teeth sharp against his lower lip and a growl in her throat from a particularly deep, forceful thrust. She left bruises on his throat that he knew would last for days, and the jolts of pain did nothing to ease the winding tightness in his belly, couldn't begin to quash the fire in his blood or the heat he felt from them both.

It was little surprise to anyone that Eret fell first, body shaking and spasming between them. Hiccup had to pull out so Eret could get off of Astrid, barely remembering to grip the base of his condom so it wouldn't slip before he rolled to his side, the haze in his mind a pleasant place to stay.

Eret jumped when there was a flash of light, blinking to clear his vision as Astrid sat up, clutching her phone victoriously with a clear and rather damning photo of she and Eret - of _only _she and Eret - naked together on her bed. He lunged for her phone on instinct, because that picture could end his career in a heartbeat, but Eret barely moved a few inches before he found himself pinned on his back, Hiccup knelt on top of him with a scarred forearm pressed tight against his throat.

_"Well fuck" _Eret's brain supplied, terribly unhelpfully _"I guess this is where I die."_

-HTTYD-

**I'm sure everyone has questions, but I will remind you guys to let me finish where I'm going before you decide if you need more answers.  
**


	25. Chapter 25

**Well, the response to last chapter was... generally positive, and everyone seems impatient for answers. Just be patient, it's alllll going somewhere *waves hands mysteriously***

**This is set _before _last chapters sexytimes. This chapter probably could have gone first for real, but... I was in the mood for Hicretstrid and had a story that needed it soon anyway. And it's been a _lot _of fun watching the speculation run riot.  
**

-HTTYD-

"You're really serious about this, huh?"

Astrid nodded, trailing a finger back and forth across his chest.

"Yeah. I know you're nervous, but there's a lot of up sides to be had here. And not just cus we both think he's kinda hot."

Hiccup felt his cheeks flush slightly, though he wasn't sure why. Before Astrid, he hadn't even really thought he _had _a sexuality, let alone a reason to explore what sort of label might fit it. Eret was attractive, if he thought about it objectively, but Hiccup wasn't entirely sure it was strictly _sex _that inspired the dark simmer in his belly when he thought of the police officer. In a way, he _challenged_ Hiccup, and Hiccup already knew that was sort of his type. Astrid was a challenge, knowing how to push his buttons, willing to draw out Hiccup's darker side while calmly confident she could put him back in his place.

It was refreshing, in a way, the back and forth of toying with Eret. Hiccup wasn't _cocky _when it came to not getting caught, but he was careful and meticulous and had a girlfriend with a legitimate reason to keep up to date with the latest techniques in forensic science. And Hiccup was a hunter, so playing a little with prey even if he wasn't _dead_ set on killing Eret... it definitely piqued the Night Fury's interests.

"Run those by me again."

"Upsides? I mean, the really obvious one is that if we did, no matter what he found on you, it would never stick. Conflict of interest, wounded ego that we fucked him and didn't call him back. Plus... I've been a main suspect for months now. Eret's professional credibility in general would be shot if anyone found out we'd fucked."

Hiccup nodded. That was a pretty heavy bit of leverage.

"How would we prove that though?"

"Well, the sex selfie is the obvious choice. Would probably have to catch him off guard for that, cus if we do manage to seduce him, he's going to _know _it's something he can't let anyone find out."

"The what?"

Astrid giggled, nuzzling his cheek.

"I forget sometimes, my sheltered little serial killer. Must be because I've trained you so well it's impossible to think you ever anything other than best sex ever... anyway" Hiccup could only blink in response, but Astrid continued on anyway to save him the trouble of speaking "basically... you know what a selfie is right?"

Hiccup nodded.

"A picture of yourself that you take yourself."

"Right. Well, sex selfie is... imagine we've just finished, lie on your back and face toward me."

He did as he was told, which Astrid was very much accustomed to him doing, and she rolled on to her side with her back to him, holding up her phone as though about to take a photo.

"So, we're naked. I take the photo. Makes it pretty clear what just happened. Sex selfie."

"Right. Ok. I can see that would be quite damning evidence."

"Exactly! Any more questions about my genius plan?"

"Oh, so many."

Astrid rolled on to her front, resting her head on her folded arms and looking up at Hiccup. Gods, she was so beautiful, it caught him off guard sometimes.

"Go on then."

Hiccup averted his eyes, trying to put order into his head. Astrid was pretty set on this _crazy_ idea of hers and it wasn't as if he didn't see her point. But that didn't change how _daunting_ her plan was. It had taken him quite some time before he'd felt comfortable enough to get intimate with her. And now, she expected him to do the same with a virtual stranger? No wonder the idea made him nervous.

But then she reached for his hand and squeezed it reassuringly, and the gleam in her eyes was a mixture of mischief and warmth that reminded him of who she was. She was _Astrid._ Ever since he met her, she'd been nothing but supportive. He trusted her, in her plan but even more importantly in that she wouldn't push him beyond what he was capable of. With her, he didn't need to be nervous. So he made an effort to think about her plan more seriously and to pin down what exactly is was that really gave him pause.

"Uh. Well, for starters... I've never done anything with anybody but you. How am I meant to know what to... _do _with him?"

"That's easy enough. I'll order him around, and if you top it's not going to be _that _different in terms of tab A into slot B for you, and I already know he's happy to bottom from Ruff. I'll do the foreplay for you."

The next point was the altogether more terrifying one.

"I can't... there is no way in heaven, hell or anything in between that I am going to be able to take off my clothes in front of him."

Astrid wrinkled her nose, nodding.

"Yeah, I know. I think... I think it's worth him seeing your scars though. Not all of them!" Astrid hastened to add at Hiccup's undoubtedly horrified look "but maybe just... take off your hoody so he can see your arms. If he's able to seperate you from the Night Fury enough to fuck you, then giving him a glimpse of something like that will only make you seem more human to him. There'd be a conflict of interest, professionally _and_ personally."

The thought of letting _anyone _but Astrid and his mother see his skin bared was still one that made Hiccup's chest tight with panic.

"I... don't know."

"Hey, hey, look at me" Astrid had shuffled closer, thumb stroking his cheek until he looked right into her eyes "I know. I know that part scares you. But I'd be right there, and it's worth noting that Eret has seen a _lot _of your handiwork, up close and personal."

Hiccup frowned.

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, I think he'd have that human reaction of _oh my gods, who did that to you? _but he's also seen many things more graphic than your scars. And I can promise you he wouldn't even ask."

"You don't know that."

Astrid smiled.

"I do. I won't let him. You think he'd argue with me if I gave him my best glare?"

Hiccup couldn't help laughing. Only _Astrid_...

"You're impossible."

"And that's why you love me."

Chuckling, Hiccup leaned up and kissed her, before they resumed entertaining her mad plan about seducing Eret.

"I don't know if I could... _perform_ if I feel like he's staring at my arms."

Astrid hummed, tapping her fingers against the bed as she thought.

"If you _really _don't want to, then you don't have to take off your hoody. I know it helps you feel safe. But if it's just about thinking he'll be staring? That's easy enough to remedy. We just make an Eret sandwich."

"Excuse me?"

Giggling, Astrid laid on her back and gestured crudely to accompany her words.

"So, basically, I am lying here. I am a piece of bread. Then Eret's on top of me, so he's looking at me and he is the sandwich filling. And then you're behind him, like another piece of bread. Sandwich. He won't be able to see your arms like that. Plus, _we'll_ be able to see each other, so you won't forget I'm there."

He was reminded again how much he trusted Astrid as she explained everything clearly, made sure he understood and addressed everything that made him nervous. And all the while, she was giggly and happy and adorable, kissing his bare chest when it was in reach before flopping on her back.

"Ok. Not... not right away, but I think I could. If you were there."

Astrid nodded, wrinkling her nose again.

"Ok, so you _could. _But do you _want _to? If you're only doing this for me, then we don't do it."

Hiccup chewed his lip, thinking.

"I do want to. I just _only _want to do it if it's with you too."

Astrid smiled, utterly beautiful as she rolled over and laid her head on his shoulder.

"Like I'd miss _that_ show."

* * *

Hiccup crossed his arms, pouting.

"Why do I have to hide?"

"Because you won't leave, and I don't think it'll work if he knews you're here."

It wasn't a jealousy thing but a protective thing for Hiccup, who didn't totally trust Eret alone with Astrid, much as he trusted Astrid could take care of herself. She stretched up and kissed her boyfriend, then playfully shoved him back into her kitchen.

"Wait there. You'll be able to hear anyway, not like this place is soundproof."

Her neighbours occasional complaints about their active sex life bore that out. Winking at Hiccup, Astrid closed the door behind her and ran a hand through her hair. She had it down, was dressed in shorts that made Hiccup's eyes wide and one of the very few tops she had that wasn't a t-shirt from the mens department (they lasted longer and weren't tight on her arms, because apparently women didn't have biceps).

And she'd invited Eret over. Well, Inspector Hunter. In his professional capacity, but still. They'd be alone in her living room, and Astrid had already seen the way his eyes wandered, the way he swallowed heavily when she got too close. He wanted... and Astrid wanted to push his buttons.

Hiccup had kindly provided her with good cause to ask the policeman over, in the form of another letter from the Night Fury. So she had two - one about the kill with the bottles, so the police would realise they'd been chasing intentionally planted leads for the last couple of weeks, and another just to talk about murder in general with some hints that Astrid may be being _watched _by the Night Fury.

Which she was, frequently. Especially when she took off her clothes. But that wasn't a secret to Astrid, so she wasn't worried.

The knock at the door was short and to the point, Astrid waiting just to be sure Hiccup wasn't about to open the kitchen door and peek. Opening her front door, Eret's eyes went awfully wide as he took her in, Astrid cocking her head just a little and offering him a bright smile.

"Hey there Eret."

"It's Inspector Hunter. Do you have the letters?"

Keeping a sweet smile on her face, Astrid stepped back from the door.

"Come on in."

She could see his internal debate, but desire to get his hands on those letters (and Astrid, she'd bet money on) won out, and he stepped through the door very hesitantly.

"Are you alone?"

"I live alone."

Eret still looked around, but Astrid technically hadn't _lied. _She didn't say she was by herself, but nobody officially lived with her.

"Have a seat."

"I'll stand."

His voice was a little strained, and when Astrid turned back to face him, she caught Eret's eyes shooting upward several inches from where he'd definitely been checking her out. His eyes landed on her face, attempting to look very professional all of a sudden again.

"You can look. You're not at work now."

"I'm on the clock."

That wasn't a denial he was looking. Astrid counted it as a small victory.

"I won't tell."

Astrid winked, and it was lovely to watch Eret squirm.

"Do you have the letters?"

"Yes."

She didn't move. Eret shuffled from foot to foot, waiting silently. He was the one to finally break the silence.

"Are you going to get them?"

"Not until you sit down. I'm used to getting my own way."

Clearly trying not to roll his eyes, Eret walked stiffly to her sofa and perched down on the very edge, as though he was afraid to crease the cushions. Astrid grinned, sitting next to him and taking pleasure in his attempts to subtly move away from her. She took even more pleasure in cornering him against the arm of the sofa, watching a flush start to creep up his neck.

"Astr- Miss Hofferson."

"Call me Astrid."

"A-Astrid. What are you doing?"

Astrid chewed on possible answers, tongue coming out to wet her lips and Eret's eyes followed the motion before he forced his gaze up to a point just above Astrid's head.

"Well, you had to leave in something of a rush last time we were alone together, and I was very disappointed about that."

He stiffened - and not in the fun way - for a minute, before swallowing thickly.

"What do you want, an apology for me having to go to a murder scene?"

Astrid heard the _"that your boyfriend caused"_ at the end there. Eret finally looked at her again, and there was a whole war going on in his face. He _knew _what the couple were, a killer and his lover, but Eret seemed almost completely powerless against whatever it was that drew him to them regardless.

Seizing her moment, Astrid leant in closer. She left just an inch or two between them, and waited, seeing just how far he could be pushed. Eret stopped breathing, mouth open. He closed the gap but stopped just short of actually kissing her, scrambling back so quickly he almost fell off the sofa in his haste to stand up. He cleared his throat, looking around.

"The letters."

Astrid nodded, sweet smile masking a little disappointment he hadn't quite gone for it. She got up and crossed over, smirking over her shoulder when she caught Eret watching her bend to retrieve the letters from her desk drawer.

"Hand them over."

She offered him a bemused look instead.

"You're not wearing gloves or holding an evidence bag, are you _trying_ to contaminate evidence right now?"

Increasingly flustered, Eret reached into his pocket and pulled out latex gloves, pulling a smaller bag from his messenger bag once he'd gloved up. Astrid knew it wasn't even proper protocol to have him come and collect the evidence anyway, but she'd insisted she would only hand them over to him. He waited, visibly itching to escape before his resolve shattered completely.

"Astrid. Give me the letters."

"No."

"We can get a court order to compel them."

"Or you could kiss me like you were about to a minute ago, and I'll hand them right over."

His face was such a picture, Astrid wished she'd had a camera to hand.

"I... _what?_"

"You heard me. I'm waiting."

Eret kept looking around, as though expecting any minute they'd be accosted by someone or she'd reveal it was all a prank. He edged closer, seeming surprisingly small for a guy over half a foot taller than her.

"Are you really gonna make me do this?"

"_Make _you kiss me? No. I don't need to. You already want to."

He swallowed again, finally losing the battle against his professional facade as he kissed Astrid, definitely breaking the rules when his gloved hand slid up to splay across her lower back. There was no soft, gentle build up with him, forgetting all his self control at once as his mouth clashed with hers, Astrid having to press herself against him to reach - Eret was a few inches taller than Hiccup, and she already had to stand on her tip-toes to kiss him if he didn't lean down.

Eret pulled away with a grunt, shaking his head and taking several steps back, chest rising and falling with rapid breaths.

"You have a boyfriend! One I have _no_ intentions of gaining the ire of."

Astrid tamped down on the urge to tell Eret Hiccup was only a few feet away, fingers still gripping the Night Fury letters in her hand.

"Here."

He took them with shaking hands, shoved them into the evidence bag a litlte roughly. Astrid got to the front door before he did, leaning against it to watch him squirm again.

"What now?"

"About said boyfriend... what if he was into it too?"

Eret''s mouth fell open, but before there was a chance to continue, his phone ruined the moment by ringing loudly. He looked between his chiming pocket and Astrid's face a few times, before pulling off the glove on one hand and reaching to grab his phone.

"Yeah Teeny?"

_"Just checking Hofferson hasn't killed you. Got the letters?"_

"I have them. I'm just leaving now."

_"Alright. See you back here in a few."_

"Yeah, bye."

He hung up, giving Astrid a pointed look.

"I need to go."

"Shame. Don't worry, I'll find a reason to get you back here soon. I'll even invite Hiccup."

Eret didn't answer, but Astrid heard his breath hitch and saw his pupils dilate. If she'd placed a hand on his chest, Astrid was certain his heart would be racing. But instead, she stepped away and pulled the door open with her, smirking as she saw Eret make his escape.

She gave him a minute first, just in case, before calling out to Hiccup.

"You can come out now."

He was out in a flash, limping and Astrid winced - she should have given him a chair, forgetting how he'd end up pacing as he waited.

"Well, how did it go?"

"Perfect. Got interrupted a little early by his phone, but... he kissed me, and when I said I'd invite you next time he came over, he suddenly forgot how to speak."

Hiccup snorted, shaking his head.

"Well, I should have known your plan would go to... plan."

"Damn straight. Now come to bed, you need to rest your leg and I need to jump on you."

Laughing, Hiccup let her take his hand to lead him to bed without complaint.

-HTTYD-

**Poor Eret, he's ever so torn and confused. **


	26. Chapter 26

**And now, we return to just after the sexy times have occurred.**

**I don't do the christmas thing and I know there are readers who also don't, so I shall wish anyone reading this a happy holiday. And if you're reading for escapism because its a tough time, I wish you a _brief _holiday season you can get away from soon.**

-HTTYD-

Astrid supposed it was a testament to how certain she was in her own safety that she stayed calm, and tapped Hiccup on the shoulder so he wouldn't actually _kill_ Eret there and then.

"Hey, back up a little babe."

Hiccup growled at her, but his grip loosened enough that Eret was able to draw breath again.

"Go hide your phone."

Astrid winked as she tapped on her phone, then placed it aside.

"No need. I just emailed the picture to you."

Eret looked between them, eyes wide and the post-coital flush on his skin draining away rapidly to leave him paled and panic-stricken.

"Was this just for... _blackmail?"_

"Blackmail? Not at all" Astrid knelt next to Eret, running her finger down his arm "we both thought you were cute, and you're not _that _subtle about checking us out every time you try to arrest me. But we're not stupid. The picture is just... insurance."

"For what?"

Astrid nudged Hiccup's arm, urging him to back up a little. He was not co-operative at first but eventually got up, though he was close enough that if Eret moved toward Astrid, Hiccup could have tackled him again in plenty of time.

"Just in case. Come on Eret, you had to know coming here was a risk."

He swallowed thickly, glancing between them.

"Are you going to let me go?"

"Of course. You're not going to say a thing, you're free to go."

Hiccup eyed Astrid shrewdly, but eventually relented, pulling off the loose condom and tossing it aside before he moved into his girlfriends waiting arms. Eret didn't move for a minute, seeming very wary of turning his back on them as he pulled on trousers, then grabbed the rest of his clothes and ran. Astrid wondered what her neighbours thought of a guy in nothing but hastily-yanked-on bottoms leaving her home as she heard the front door close.

"So... that happened."

Astrid nodded, brushing a kiss on Hiccup's throat.

"You did so well love, I'm proud of you."

He watched as she rubbed his still-exposed forearm, then shrugged slowly.

"I might have shown our hand a little forcefully there. I was just worried he was gonna hurt you."

Astrid ran her hand up and down Hiccup's back, smiling at his anxious face.

"He knows who you are already. The only thing you showed him then is that you may well kill to protect me."

Hiccup frowned.

"Of course I would."

In his own weird, serial-killer way, Astrid knew that was a sign of love from Hiccup. Which in itself probably should have concerned her, but Astrid was oddly warmed by it. They were definitely a messed up pair.

"Good to know. So... since our friend bailed early, want to finish up?"

Hiccup raised an eyebrow, then let out a short chuckle.

"Uh, sure. Just let me go clean off the condom goop... what is the goop?"

Having never thought about it, Astrid shrugged and leant over to retrieve the box since Hiccup was getting up.

"Some kind of lubricant, according to the packaging."

After casting a longing look over Astrid's naked form, Hiccup took the information and left, while Astrid ended up reading the back of the box to pass the time. He was back fairly quickly, and at Astrid's pointed look, he shucked his t-shirt before joining her on the bed again.

"Are you alright to take off your bottoms?"

Astrid wasn't going to assume - he'd pushed his own limits that day already. He took a minute to nod, and let Astrid slowly remove his jeans, careful over his prosthetic before she ran her hands over his thighs. By the time Astrid laid over him, letting Hiccup feel her bare skin against his own, he'd relaxed again and she felt him harden against her inner thigh, letting out his sweet little gasps as she kissed him. His arms came up to wrap around her, holding Astrid to him. She was still wet from earlier, hand slipping down to guide Hiccup inside her.

The intimacy of Hiccup bare within her made Astrid shiver, him pliant and trusting beneath her so very different to the weight of Eret over her. Not that Eret wasn't good _fun,_ but Astrid understood why Hiccup had only been willing if Astrid was there too, knew it wouldn't have been half as good if it had just been her seducing Eret.

Hiccup's hands curled around her thighs, squeezing gently at the muscles that moved there. Gods, she loved him, reminded of it anew by how he'd put so much faith in Astrid to even invite Eret to her bed to begin with. He watched Astrid ride him with his big green eyes, lips parted as he moaned weakly. They were in no rush, savouring each other as she rocked on him slowly, letting Hiccup settle back into what he knew, where he felt completely safe. His skin was warm against hers when she leant down to press her chest to his, Hiccup nuzzling her neck before his mouth sought hers again.

"I love you."

It was a rare and sweet sentiment from his lips, and Astrid did her best not to overreact and make him feel self-conscious. So she kissed him softly, stroked his jaw.

"I love you too."

And said no more of it, though her hips twitched a little more urgently against his, and Hiccup matched her increased pace, let her guide his hand until he stroked her to a shuddering climax, soon following her over that edge until they were panting and spent as they held each other close.

Hiccup rolled them on to their sides, still holding her securely as they came down from the high. A little shuffling to get more comfortable found Hiccup with his face pressed into her chest, as he enjoyed the sound of Astrid's heart beating beneath his ear.

"So, now what do we do about Eret?"

He eventually asked, tracing idle shapes in the sweat on her stomach.

"For the moment, we wait. We didn't _actually _tell him anything specific he could use against us anyway, and apart from you trying to choke him a little bit, there was nothing other than your average threesome here. So if he did try to turn you in, he'd be implicating himself more than you, and he'd look pretty bad to boot."

Hiccup nodded slowly.

"Right. Are we... was this a one time thing?"

Astrid almost shrugged, but stopped herself before she accidentally nudged Hiccup off of her.

"Hmm. Well, if he wants to come back, I'm not against a repeat performance unless you are?"

He shrugged as best he could.

"I... I think I need to process it all first, and see how he reacts from now before I know if I'd feel safe enough?"

"That's fair. Nothing happens if you aren't comfortable babe."

Hiccup hummed, nuzzling into her skin as Astrid ran her fingers through his hair. They eventually got up to clean themselves up and head back to Hiccup's, where Valka hesitantly enquired as to the progress of their afternoon - she knew about the plan, because Hiccup didn't like hiding things from his mother. though she definitely didn't approve.

"Is all well son?"

"Uh, yeah. Went perfectly to plan. I think."

Hiccup glanced to Astrid, who nodded back as she picked up a biscuit from the plate Hiccup had put out to go with their cups of tea.

"Well, the part where you jumped on him wasn't _planned, _but it didn't do any real damage."

"You did what?"

Valka quizzed, and Hiccup looked a little sheepish.

"I uh... Astrid took a picture to use as 'evidence', and Eret sort of lunged for her phone. I _might _have overreacted and jumped on top of him. He's fine, honest."

In a show of how much more she trusted Astrid than when she'd first started dating Hiccup, Valka turned to Astrid for confirmation.

"He is. He left under his own steam, and the only bruises he had were from me. I bite."

Valka actually laughed lightly.

"Yes, I had noticed."

Her sea-green eyes flitted over to Hiccup, who usually bore a couple of marks on or around his neck from Astrid's teeth.

"I promise he likes it, otherwise I wouldn't."

She only hurt Hiccup in ways he liked. Not that Astrid was going to say _that _to Valka. Hiccup's cheeks still flushed at the comment she'd made about the biting, but Valka just chuckled to herself before washing down painkillers with her tea. Dunking another cookie in her own mug, Astrid cast her mind to their playmate from earlier and wondered how Eret was faring in his moral quandary.

* * *

Eret somehow made it back to his home, and climbed into the shower, still feeling twinges in his lower back and bruised throat from the less-than-gentle treatment he'd had at the hands of...

_Fuck. _He really had... Eret knew he had no excuse, no sound reason for how he'd let it happen.

There was no visible injury from Hiccup - the same could not be said for Astrid's handiwork - on his neck, but Eret could still feel the phantom pressure where a forearm had pressed hard enough to obstruct his breathing. Eret had very little doubt he had come very close to a place on the victim list of the Night Fury.

But instead, they had just let him go, and it left Eret with a massive stack of questions and very few answers.

He climbed out of the shower, wincing at the dull ache of being quite soundly fucked earlier. Pulling on some comfortingly familiar clothes, Eret swallowed as he looked at the ever-growing space in his home consumed by work on the Night Fury.

Eret _knew _it was Hiccup. There wasn't a doubt in his mind when he looked up into those eyes and saw nothing _human _there.

And, somehow, Eret had been _stupid _enough to end up in a situation where all the knowledge in the world wouldn't help him take down the Night Fury, because he'd tainted his own credibility the minute he let the couple take him to bed.

Even now, there was an itch under his skin, the lure of darkness that led him there to begin with not abated. If anything, it was _worse. _He'd seen Hiccup look vulnerable and scared, saw the scars on his skin that began to knit together all the pieces that ended up forming one of the most intelligent and ruthless killers ever to stalk the streets.

Groaning, Eret buried his head in his hands and tried to work out where the fuck he was meant to go from there. Could he face going back to his colleagues? Trying to work the Night Fury case, knowing he'd never be able to go forward, that any evidence Eret _might _find would have been unusable? But if he didn't, that would be just as suspicious, given his drive to work the case until he'd gone and bedded the top two suspects.

The books on serial killers he owned mocked him, jeering at how Eret had judged everyone who became obsessed with serial killers as he wondered how he'd fallen into such a trap himself.

Copies of the latest Night Fury letters were hung on his wall, and Eret felt a humourless laugh escape him at the sight of them. Assuming Hiccup had written them, he actually went to the trouble of appearing like a sadistic, psychopathic stalker of his own girlfriend. sending anonymous letters under guise of staying hidden away.

No wonder Astrid had turned down protection. She clearly felt _quite _safe with him. Eret was still transfixed by their dynamic, how heavily Hiccup seemed to lean on Astrid, how gently she guided him, how pliant he was to her orders. If he didn't know better, Eret would have said she'd been pulling his strings all along, but the kills had been going a long time before those two ever met, and Astrid's first book published before then too. They could have been lying, he supposed, but it seemed unlikely - the quality and detail in Astrid's books had gone from strength to strength since she began dating someone who was probably something of an expert.

How did she find out? Why did Hiccup trust her so fully? When did she decide to actively help interfere with police investigations? Eret was beginning to understand why Astrid found being arrested and interrogated increasingly comical - she knew they'd never find anything on her, because she didn't do it.

Left with so many questions, so few answers and even fewer ideas on how to go forward, Eret continued to pace around his living room.

What had Astrid meant about that picture being _insurance? _Surely even she didn't think he'd just drop the case?

Eret slept very little that night, and went into work the next morning in a foul mood, which was noticed along with the prominent lovebites his uniform didn't completely cover. He took his coffee and protein bar and went straight into the Night Fury room, soon followed by Teeny who naturally wanted to know all about how Eret ended up with bruises and _why _he wasn't in a chipper enough mood to match his apparently having gotten laid.

"Come on, something happened."

"I _don't _want to talk about it. Can we just work? Quielly?"

"Fine, fine. Killjoy."

Eret swore under his breath before looking over at Teeny.

"What about this room says _joy_ to you? I'm just trying to stay professional and try to work out how we take this vicious killer off the streets!"

Teeny recoiled, blinking and Eret cursed inwardly again, dropping into his seat and instantly looking very very busy.

"Wow, definitely not a happy bunny today. I'm gonna let you cool off and go work out there."

Being left alone with his thoughts was not a better position for Eret's sanity, which felt all the more fragile for his poor sleep the night before. But at least he couldn't vent his turbulent mood on to his workmate, which was probably better for the sake of his career.

Eret felt sick with himself as he looked around, viewing the handiwork of a killer and knowing that the twisted part of himself that was drawn to Astrid and Hiccup in the first place was not gone, and that given the chance, he'd go back and put himself in harms way again for that sickening thrill.

That fact scared him more than Hiccup did.

-HTTYD-

**Because I know there are concerns about his position in the story... I am actually _almost _finished with Eret. I think he'll be gone by around chapter 30, though as alway with me, best laid plans and all... could be chapter 87 I remember what I wsa doing and Eret's just completely mad by then. Who knows!  
**


	27. Chapter 27

**Notice to all: Updates/my general presence may be quite hit and miss over the next few weeks, as I am moving! I'll be online every day, and so I'll still be available to chat to etc, but writing-wise I can't say how much free time for writing I'll have while I pack up my life.**

**Scrumblenut - first off, thank you for the multiple reviews! Secondly, I have never seen Castle, so please don't try to base expectations of this fic on that, cus that puts us on different tracks completely. And thirdly, I'm sorry you feel that way about Eret's arc, but it was planned from the start. The story was never going to go another way. **

**Also, I live in the UK, and so Daylight Savings Time for me is forward one hour in spring (Spring Forward) and one hour back in autumn (Fall Back). **

-HTTYD-

"I was starting to think you'd forgotten me!"

"Don't be so dramatic."

Heather winked, still ready with Astrid's usual almost the second she walked in the door.

"For real though, you haven't been by as much lately."

"I spend a lot of time at Hiccup's, and he also shows affection with baked goods, so it seems silly to come and spend money here when he keeps leaving cupcakes in my fridge. Plus I can eat those in my underwear."

Laughing, Heather shrugged.

"I honestly doubt _anybody_ would complain if you came in here in your undies. I know I wouldn't."

She winked again, and Astrid was glad to see Heather had recovered herself pretty well after that incident where she'd almost been viciously attacked, only to be rescued by the Night Fury.

"I'll bear that in mind. Catch you later."

Astrid waved as she headed out to go to work, having finished the latest batch of baked treats from Hiccup the night before while writing, meaning a trip for her sugar hit to Heather that morning. She hadn't seen him for a couple of days, and probably still wouldn't for another two or three - Valka was sick, so Hiccup was busy with that, and Astrid didn't want to add any stress to him.

They were still waiting to see what Eret was going to do. Astrid was _completely_ confident he wasn't going to say anything, no matter what he knew - or at least _thought _he knew, as he had little proof beyond his own gut feelings. But she definitely understood why Hiccup was still wary sometimes; it was _him _who would get in real trouble, after all.

Not that that stopped him. Astrid already knew when his next planned hunt was, had seen him grow twitchy and dark when the urge came over him. She'd even _seen _him right after his last, which was a first. It was a long time before he felt comfortable leaving Astrid in his home with Valka, alone, while he was out cleaning up the streets by making a mess. But he finally _had _(with Valka's consent), and so she saw him come back, saw him peel away his bloody clothes before scrubbing away the evidence. Watched every detailed, painstaking step he took to remove trace from his clothes, his weapons, his ring.

Then dragged him to bed and demanded every detail.

Shaking her head and trying to ignore the thrill that quivered within her at those memories, Astrid downed the rest of her rapidly cooling coffee, then headed in to the office to perform her wage-slave duties. At least her job wasn't awful, even if it was nowhere _near _as fun as writing about murder. Or listening to Hiccup talk about murder...

Hiccup texted her that afternoon, to keep her updated on how Valka was doing and just to keep in touch a bit while they were apart. Her own mother kept dropping hints about engagements and moving in together, and had even - quite horrifyingly - asked about _babies. _Astrid's adamant answer to all was to swear at her mother until she backed off. Hiccup didn't want children, and even if Astrid _had _(which she didn't, so it was fine), she could understand why it wasn't something Hiccup wanted.

As to living together or marriage... those were huge steps, and Hiccup wasn't that sold on marriage as a whole.(again, given the issues with his stepfather, Astrid wasn't surprised). Plus, while he trusted her, and Valka seemed to be coming around on the whole, it was a big leap to have Astrid there _all_ the time. To give her completely free reign. Besides which, Astrid liked her space, and there wasn't much room to set aside for her writing setup, especially when the home design theme was accessibility.

So no, _mother, _she wasn't going to be living with Hiccup any time soon. Which was completely fine! Gods, her mother wound her up sometimes.

"Astrid, are you ok?"

"Fine! Why?"

Her boss gestured to the mess in front of her, where Astrid had apparently taken to shredding post-it notes with her bare hands, leaving a mounting pile of rainbow destruction on her desk. Wincing, Astrid hoped they hadn't been useful ones.

"Oh. Uh. Just... stressed about something with my mom. Sorry."

Clearing up the pile of paper shreds, Astrid stopped thinking of her mother and got to work. Hiccup texted her that evening to ask if he could call her, and it was a sweet relief just to hear his voice again.

"Hey. How's your mom doing?"

"Better. She's resting. I was gonna call the doctor in the morning but it looks like she'll be ok."

"That's good. Let her know I'm thinking of her?"

She could hear the soft smile in Hiccup's voice.

"I will. I'll let you know tomorrow how she's doing and when it's ok for you to come over next."

"Good, cus I miss you. But I know your mom is important. I can wait."

"I miss you too. And thank you for not giving me a hard time about this."

Astrid doubted he really expected her to have done so, but she still appreciated that he was expressing _his _appreciation for her understanding. He was sweet like that.

Still, she was more than happy to hear that Valka was back to a point where Hiccup felt comfortable not hawking over her constantly, and Astrid's insistence he come over to her place first made him chuckle with the implications, and he outright laughed when Astrid was more blunt.

"We can go back to yours later. I just don't wanna keep your mother awake."

"I'm sure she'll appreciate that. Want me to pick you up from work?"

"Sure."

And there he was when Astrid left work that day, with a cake box in the back seat and a re-usable travel mug full of coffee waiting in the cupholder.

"I didn't have time to go by your place, otherwise I'd have brought pastry too."

"It's fine, there's cake!"

He smiled, letting Astrid kiss his adorable face before he moved to start the car up. She sat quite happily gazing over at him, very glad to be seeing him again, until Hiccup became to squirm - he was never going to be comfortable being _stared _at endlessly, she knew. So she averted her eyes and focused on coffee, which was amazing as pretty much anything Hiccup ever made was.

"Have you heard anything off Eret?"

"No, I'd have let you know if I had. I wonder if we broke him. You haven't been out, so he's probably not been very busy."

Hiccup snorted, shaking his head.

"My mom comes before murder."

He drummed his fingers against the steering wheel, and Astrid wouldn't be surprised if it were only a couple more days before the Night Fury had to sate his need to hunt again - Hiccup started getting twitchy in the lead up, she'd noticed. He insisted she not drag him along to her place, so he could carry and not drop the cake box. Astrid reluctantly agreed and skipped ahead to unlock the door, waiting very patiently for Hiccup to put the cake away and take off his shoes before she jumped on him.

Hiccup was _adorably_ wrecked by the end of round one, and Astrid happily admired him with fresh bruises on his throat and collarbone, skin flushed and sweaty, hair damp and stuck to his face until he raised a shaky hand to shove it up and away.

"Are you ok?"

"Mhmm. Just trying to catch my breath. I knew you'd be pretty rough with me today."

"I wasn't too rough was I?"

He was better, and definitely _enjoyed _certain aspects of rough play, but Hiccup still had his limits. But thankfully, he shook his head.

"No. I'd have told you... or you'd have noticed when I froze up or freaked out. I do appreciate you asking though."

Astrid smiled and kissed her adorable boyfriend, who returned her smile and nuzzled her when she shuffled closer to him. They laid quietly for a few minutes, enjoying the last hints of afterglow before Hiccup started squirming, a little nervous.

"What's up?"

"I uh... you can say no, but I..." he wouldn't quite meet her eye "when we were with Eret, you did something he seemed to like. A lot."

Astrid had to think on that for a minute - she did quite a few things to Eret, all of which he seemed to enjoy quite a bit, but she'd done most of the same to Hiccup. Except...

"You mean when I fingered him open for you?"

Cheeks colouring, Hiccup nodded.

"Y-yeah."

Given how embarrassed he seemed to be, Astrid had a feeling she knew what he was getting at. Or _trying_ to get at.

"And you are, what, curious?"

"A little? I... for me, a big part of getting used to the idea of... sex, was that cus of, you know, stuff, I thought penetration always _hurt. _I know that's not true now, but..."

Astrid's heart ached for how twisted Hiccup's stepfather had made wonderful things like sex seem, and though Astrid would never tell Valka, she knew just from the way Hiccup let things slip and panicked over certain things that he'd obviously _seen_ unspeakable things done to his mother, or at the very least _heard _her suffering.

"But you want to see for yourself?"

He nodded slowly.

"Yeah. That and... just because. If you're ok with that?"

The mix of unsurety and hope and curiousity in Hiccup's face was quite something, but Astrid hadn't even considered saying no when she was sure Hiccup really meant he wanted to try it.

"Go clean yourself up from earlier, you'll want to be comfortable and I know you hate feeling sticky."

Hiccup often did the shuffle to the bathroom fairly soon post-sex, and at the very least used a couple of wet wipes if he couldn't move much right away. Still a tad unsteady on his feet, Hiccup shuffled himself to the end of the bed, making sure his prosthetic and organic feet were both planted firmly on the ground before he shuffled off, his nudity allowing Astrid a good look at his cute butt before she reached for the wipes herself, cleaning his come off her thighs before it dried.

He came back refreshed but clearly a little hyperaware of the wandering around naked, which he didn't really do. His sense of safety in that vulnerable state seemed to fade when Astrid wasn't right there with him. Plus, he was obviously a little nervous anyway, thinking he had asked her for something outlandish rather than something Astrid was actually quite fond of doing. She'd only never offered it to Hiccup because she didn't want him to feel pressured, or unnerved.

His eyes landed immediately on the lube in Astrid's hand, but she placed it down and beckoned him over. Hiccup moved, letting Astrid pull him to the bed and taking her kisses happily. She was confused when he tried to move again, stilling him with a hand on his hip as he made to turn on to all fours.

"You don't need to do that love, I can manage just fine with you on your back. Plus, it'll be easier on your knee."

Even if Hiccup didn't have a prosthetic, she _highly _doubted he would manage to be comfortable and relaxed if he couldn't _see _Astrid. But he'd only seen her do that to Eret when he was on all fours, so he obviously thought that was how it was done. Cheeks flushing again, Hiccup laid on his back.

"I'm gonna go slow, ok? If you wanna stop, or something doesn't feel good, just say and we stop."

Astrid commented as she rubbed his thigh, waiting for him to nod.

"Ok."

"It might feel a little _strange _at first, but you do get used to it."

"Have you..."

He didn't need to finish for her to know what he was asking.

"I've done it, and had it done to me before, yeah. I like it, and I've never had a complaint. I just want you to know in advance what's coming."

Wanting him aroused, and more importantly _relaxing _before anything went in anywhere, Astrid started with familiar territory and palmed his soft cock. It didn't take long for him to start to swell under her hand, filling out further when she lifted and stroked him properly. Hiccup huffed and wriggled a bit, enjoying her ministrations.

"Might feel a bit weird, but nothing is going in yet ok?"

He nodded tightlly as Astrid opened the lube bottle and squeezed a glob onto her hand, returning her now free other hand to his cock to stroke him again. The lubed hand trailed down, massaging the tight little muscle there. Hiccup squirmed, face confused as he tried to figure out the new sensations. Astrid could feel when he relaxed a little, tension easing enough that she looked up to ask if he wanted to carry on.

"You can... I'm ok."

"You sure?"

Hiccup gave her another nod, clenching instinctively when he felt her finger breach him. It shouldn't have hurt him, but she knew first times could take some getting used to. Leaning down, Astrid licked and teased the sensitive tip of his cock, an effective distraction that allowed her to press her finger all the way in. Astrid waited, letting him adjust to it before she moved her finger, seeking and searching...

"Ah!"

_There _it was. Hiccup jerked, visibly surprised by the sudden sensation.

"You ok?"

"What was _that_?"

Kissing his cock with a small giggle, Astrid wiggled her finger a little again, watching as Hiccup shuddered and gasped.

"_That _is what Eret liked so much. Your prostate, it's a sensitive gland that is best accessed through the butt. You have one, I do not. Want me to keep going?"

Hiccup's head bobbed forward eagerly.

"Uh-huh."

"Ok. Think you can take two? Easier for me that way."

His muscles tightened around her finger, as though testing before Hiccup relaxed again, a softly whispered "yes" his consent to continue. Astrid added more lube - there was no such thing as too much lube, in her books - before pressing her fingers back in, and he was relaxed enough to take two pretty easily. As soon as Astrid found his little hidden hot spot, Hiccup probably didn't _care _how many fingers were in him so long as they were touching him like that.

Astrid was _very _glad he'd plucked up the courage to ask her for this, because he was _incredibly_ sexy writhing on her fingers, hips bucking, cock leaking as he whimpered and whined. Green eyes kept falling closed as Astrid's fingers rubbed back and forth, as though Hiccup wanted to watch but it felt _too good _for him to pay that much attention to anything other than getting off.

It was an intimate thing - she was, for all intents and purposes, inside Hiccup. And as she was every one of his firsts, that definitely made it all the more potent an experience every time they tried something new, because Hiccup had to _trust_ her so much to let her do it.

When she gripped his cock and tugged him just the way he liked, Hiccup lost the fight to hold out, to stretch the moment longer before he spasmed all over, tight around her fingers as his back arched high, come splattering her hand and his belly, a few more spurts landing on her still-bare skin as he twitched and shuddered so violently before finally dropping heavily to the bed, panting hard.

"Oh my gods..."

He looked utterly debauched, but she could see Hiccup felt a little overwhelmed and didn't want him to come crashing down from that high. Wiping her hands clean hastily, Astrid crawled up the bed and laid an arm over his chest, Hiccup's arm coming to wrap around her instinctively.

"You good love?"

"Mhmm. How... how does it feel good for you if only I have that prostate thing?"

Hiccup finally managed to ask, voice still showing he was a bit dazed.

"There are nerves there that can feel good, depends on the person though. I like it. And it feels... different, more intense. Sometimes _too_ much so, but when you're in the mood for it and the guys good, it's incredible."

Astrid continued on explaining anal sex, thinking Hiccup's quiet was his curiousity before a weak little whimper left him, Astrid's words apparently serving to arouse him further.

"Sounds like you like the sound of it."

"I uh... I do. Just not sure if I'd want to be giving or taking it to be honest."

Even Hiccup was surprised he'd said that aloud, but he didn't take it back and Astrid grinned, leaning over to kiss him.

"Who says we can't try both?"

* * *

None of them were asleep, and they all knew it.

Eret still couldn't believe he'd gone back there. There was clearly something wrong with him that he could return to their bed, especially after coming so close to being a Night Fury victim he could still feel Hiccup's arm on his throat if he thought about it for more than a second.

Neither had brought it up, which was both unsettling and a relief. Were they just going to pretend like Eret didn't know?

Well, he hadn't turned them in, and it hadn't stopped him going back. So maybe they were just that confident. They also hadn't mentioned the photo, but Eret hadn't been questioned by his bosses or sacked yet.

Astrid's eyes were closed, her head resting on Hiccup's chest. His arm was loosely draped around her shoulders. His eyes were open. Even in the dark, those eyes weren't anywhere near as empty as they had been before. And despite his twisted libido taking him back there, Eret had _just _enough preservation instinct left to know he wasn't going to fall asleep in the same bed as a serial killer.

_Gods, what a ridiculous thing to think. I need help._

One blue eye cracked open when Eret rose from the bed, both watching him dress in silence before he left. At least it wasn't the mad, rushed _I'm-going-to-die_ of before. Eret didn't quite breathe properly until he was outside again, where reality and clarity and maybe just the final remnants of his common sense smacking him in the face alongside the cold night air.

"What am I doing?"

There was no way it was going to end well. The sensible thing to do... well, the sensible thing to do would have been never to be seduced in the first place. The second most sensible - if undesirable - thing to do would be to turn himself in for what he'd done, and get the Night Fury off the streets. But despite everything, Eret still had no _proof _it was Hiccup. He may as well have confessed to Eret by saying "I am the Night Fury, serial killer extraordinaire" and Eret couldn't prove a _damn thing._

Third most sensible would have been not to go back, followed closely by never going back _again._

Climbing into the shower when he got home, Eret scrubbed himself clean, taking stock of the bruises Astrid left on his skin. Less of the visible throat-marks that time, but there were several littering his chest and collarbone, And lines down his back where Astrid's nails had dragged, little spots of broken skin where she'd been especially rough. The blonde woman was _feral._

There was no more stark a reminder of just _what _Eret had gotten himself entangled in than what happened the following morning. Having given up somewhat on his obsessive reading/working at home - what was the _point? _He knew who it was now for sure - Eret had actually gotten a half-decent nights sleep before his phone ringing at just gone five in the morning roused him.

Eret stood over the body, and he saw the brutality of it all. There was a bruise on the corpses throat that looked like they'd been choked, their neck crushed between the same hands that Eret had shuddered with pleasure under not long ago. The current best guess for weapon was a brick, based on the brick found nearby with what looked like a little brain matter and a lot of blood.

His stomach should have been turned. Guilt and shame should have been crawling on his skin. But when Eret closed his eyes, he saw the scars on HIccup's arms and the tender way he looked at Astrid.

Which, in hindsight, Eret thought was probably all entirely intentional. They'd shown him a vulnerable, traumatised man who was a curious lover to clash with the dark, sadistic bastard he became when prowling the streets like a lethal hunter. And it had done just enough to throw Eret for a loop.

He wrestled with himself for over a week, trying to work the Night Fury case without losing his mind. And still, when Astrid texted him? He went. Eret knew he was already in too deep.

The following morning - having left Astrid's flat close to 2am - Eret had barely gotten home, showered and crawled in to bed when his phone rang again. Having been slipping to 'sleep' state, Eret frowned at the message.

_"Fresh Fury kill. It's only been a week. Weird one though."_

Something was off for Eret right away. For starters, he was _with _Hiccup only two hours before, and the body had been there longer than that apparently. And that was before they considered the two things that really, _really _stood out. Such as the fact the victim was the husband of a police officer - despite everything, the Night Fury didn't seem to go after them in particular. And the other glaring shift was the fact this particular victim was found _indoors. _They didn't have a single Fury kill that wasn't outside.

He dumped people he hated like trash when they were battered and broken to his satisfaction. He didn't leave them resting on a (now ruined) plush carpet, with protection from the elements. The MO was all kinds of off. But the branding was the most distinctive part, the Night Fury's signature. And there it was, staring up from the front of the left hip. That was the other sorta weird thing - the guy was naked, and they couldn't cover him for fear of contaminating evidence.

"You know we gotta ask. Where were you last night?"

Scowling, the officer who's husband was beaten to death feigned insult in a _do you really have to ask _kind of way. Still, he humoured the with an answer.

"Out. My husband and I were having marital issues, I've been going for long walks at night to prevent arguments escalating."

Scratching his head, Eret was absolutely bewildered. He'd definitely been with Hiccup last night. Which meant it was nigh on impossible he'd have had the chance. And, with the body indoors, he'd have had to _know _the husband was out at the time. Seemed like a big coincidence. But _still, _the brand was there. A brutal beating and that brand _screamed _Night Fury, but a lot of other things just diid not add up.

Eret called Astrid that morning, asking the needed question.

"Did Hiccup go anywhere after I left?"

"Nope. Sleeping like a baby, which I know cus _I _couldn't sleep last night. Why?"

"Check the news."

And with that, Eret hung up. There was no answering call or text from the couple, but there _was _an answering message from the Night Fury.

Not even twenty four hours after Eret's encounter with the confusing body, the first victims husband was dead. And, as though to drive it all home that the night before had been _someone else - _the choice of victim suggesred suspicion on the husband - there was a message on the wall, painted in smudgy strokes of the dead guys blood.

"_I don't like copycats."_

-HTTYD-

**Yes, Eret went back. I tried to be as non descriptive as possible and there's nothing really explicit there. Besides, y'all know Eret's only got a few more chapters. **


	28. Chapter 28

***dramatic music plays***

***author smacks stereo***

***relaxing music plays***

-HTTYD-

Eret scratched his head, pacing back and forth outside the crime scene. He was too used to outdoor Night Fury scenes; it felt strange standing in a carpeted room with a dead body now.

"Penny for your thoughts buddy?"

Teeny asked, pulling off his forensic shoe-cover bootees before he joined Eret outside. Eret reminded himself he couldn't tell Teeny everything anymore, like how he had almost become a Night Fury victim himself, or the whole bedding Hiccup and Astrid thing.

"Just... ok. Say the first _was _a copy cat, which the Night Fury seems to be telling us. How did they fake the brand? It's pretty distinctive. And which of the husbands should we be looking at as the bad guy here?"

"Whaddya mean?"

Eret scrubbed at his face.

"Well, if we assume him in there killed his husband... was it self defence or the end point of an abusive relationship? Judging by the violence in there tonight, my money is on the Night Fury saying that tonights victim is the real bad guy, but we have no proof otherwise."

Teeny nodded as he followed Eret's train of thought.

"We might. Post-mortem on the first guy should be done soon. Maybe that'll turn up old abuse signs for us?"

"Maybe. That still leaves the brand though."

"Just means we know what we're looking for. Night Fury was kind enough to ransack the place, but they left us a gift upstairs."

"A _gift?_"

Teeny nodded again, practically skipping.

"Yeah. That's what I was coming out to tell you."

Eret hastened to follow Teeny back in, climbing the stairs eagerly to find a duffel bag placed neatly on the bed, looking far too tidy against the absolutely _destroyed_ bedroom.

"You've looked inside?"

"Yeah. Looks like all the evidence we woulda needed to after the vic for murder. If the Night Fury hadn't gotten there first. Gloves, clothes, all the good stuff. _And _this. Gloves?"

Eret gloved up and took the little evidence bag, looking at what was otherwise a pretty unassuming ring. And the little image engraved upon it was identical to the marks branded in to each and every Night Fury victim so far, save for the ambiguous cigarette burn early ones.

His phone vibrated in his pocket, and so Eret reluctantly handed over the bag to Teeny and removed his latex glove, opening the text he'd recieved. It was from an unknown number, but he was pretty sure it was Hiccup.

_"I want to know where he got it."_

It didn't take a genius - Hiccup wanted to know where the ring came from. It obviously wasn't his own.

"Anything important?"

"Huh? Oh. No. Let's make sure Forensics get in here and make sure nothing else was left behind."

The bloody footprints said that the murder came before the ransacking, which meant the Night Fury had been content in their safety despite any earlier ruckus. Which left Eret wondering how used to noise the neighbours were...

"We talked to the neighbours yet?"

"Nope. Waiting for morning... we need to get the body out before it gets light, the papers are gonna have a field day with this double hit in one house. And the copycat thing gives the Night Fury a big chunk of reasonable doubt when they get caught. How do we prove who did what? The brand was unique... until now."

Eret shrugged.

"Yeah. I suppose the angry response kind of says the Night Fury hasn't seen any other copycat killings yet. The message and the indoor location is unique, but otherwise this is every inch the Fury kill."

"Including some serious anatomy skill."

"What did they do?"

"Stabbed him specifically to silence the screams, _then_ beat him to death. Still doesn't explain why the sound of all the bedroom ruckus didn't alert anyone..."

"We'll have to wait and see what the autopsies say."

When looking over the autopsy report for the first body later that day, Eret felt like he needed to ask _where _Hiccup got his information from. Between the neighbours saying they had ignored a lot of arguments from that house - complete with "don't call the police, I _am _the police" comments made by one of the murdered two - and the list of healed fractures that screamed domestic violence on the first body... it was little wonder Hiccup had been so happy to dispense his swift, bloody justice upon the second body.

"Wow. How did nobody see this?"

Eret sighed, taking coffee from Teeny as they pored over the report.

"People see what they wanna see. And nobody really thinks about DV in gay relationships. It's a thing men do to women, an automatic assumption. We never assume a woman beats her husband, or gay couples abusing each other."

Teeny winced.

"Yeah, guess you're right. We've done the same with murderers for almost as long as there have been police too. How many murders went unsolved cus we were always looking for a guy?"

"Too many."

At least Teeny was coming around on that - he'd baulked at the idea that the Night Fury could have been female early on. A lot of people had. Eret was pretty sure anyone who'd met Astrid during the course of their investigation probably thought it at least _somewhat _possible. That woman was feral, and Eret knew that _intimately. _He _still _absolutely considered her capable of murder.

He just knew she wasn't the Night Fury now.

"One of the more tech savvy guys found where he got this from. Apparently if you put 'Night Fury ring' into a search engine, with a little patience you can find people selling rings with the same sort of emblem on. Most aren't exact matches, this one must have cost him a bit."

Eret groaned.

"Spectacular. Now we get to hope nobody else tries to copy them."

_"Internet."_

Eret texted back to the unknown number in response to Hiccup, wondering when he'd actually start feeling the guilt he was certain he _should _be feeling by then. He doubted it would stay away forever. He wasn't that lucky.

* * *

_"Imagine having the stones to try and mimic the Night Fury and thinking you'd get away with it."_

_"Didn't last long, from what I heard."_

_"Still, imagine your last moments on earth spent **knowing**_ _who the Night Fury is."_

Hiccup rolled his eyes as he scrolled through the forum lazily. He was just keeping himself occupied while Astrid hunched over her notepad, struck by a wave of inspiration and pouring it all onto paper, pen scratching away rapidly.

"Are you reading about yourself again?"

Astrid's voice signified she was done, placing her pad aside before she leaned in to see what he was doing.

"Good to keep track of what they're saying. And definitely to keep an eye on some... there's a couple who are getting a bit _too _interested, so I have to watch for them mentioning things that tell me where they are, since everything on this part of the web is anonymous."

She leant in properly, head resting on his shoulder.

"Why?"

"Well, if they're in the arse-end of Alaska, they're not really of interest. If they live in the UK, I'm keeping a bit of a closer eye on them. I don't _want _anybody interested in me."

"Except me."

He chuckled.

"You're different."

"Damn straight. Anyone on your radar?"

"A couple, but this one here..." he tapped the screen over a username, Astrid squinting at the dark font "_FurysFirstFan._ They post about wanting to meet me. A lot. And I've seen them around a few times, they're definitely British."

Astrid rolled her eyes, moving to stretch out lazily across the bed.

"He could just get himself arrested for beating his girlfriend or something, you'd be only too happy to meet them then."

"Yeah, but he'd not have long to enjoy meeting me that way. Oh, your name has come up a couple of times around here too."

_"What?_"

Astrid sat bolt upright, blinking.

"My letters to you have been noticed. It's more that they are talking about your books, details not in the papers and so on. Don't worry" Hiccup kissed her hair, rubbed her arm "I wouldn't let anything happen to you."

"That explains my rise in sales then, my serial killer boyfriends fan club are buying them up. Hey, could you do some letters about the copycat before I finish up the next book? I think the line _I don't like copycats _would make a great ending."

Hiccup nodded.

"Sure. Last one for a while though, I won't be able to type on that thing when I have surgery."

The scar tissue formed around his repeatedly broken fingers was becoming more problematic, and so _very_ reluctantly (after wheedling by both his mother and his girlfriend), Hiccup had agreed to have a minor operation on one of his hands to see if it would help at all. He was warned his hand would be more stiff before it healed and they knew if it had done anything, which was why he was starting with his right hand - if it didn't help, or made it worse, Hiccup didn't want to lose the use of his dominant left hand. And that old typewriter was such a pain to use, he wasn't going to even _try _and type on it with the full use of only one hand.

He'd probably have to drop a murder in the healing time though, to avoid suspicion. He could wield most weapons one handed.

"I know. I promise to take care of you as much as possible."

"Thanks. They said they'll give me a special hand brace so I can still use my arm, cus I need to be able to lift mom up and stuff like that still."

Luckily, Hiccup was already used to doing things around the house one handed, from all the times his hands had seized up on him before, and as they'd been having treatment on and off for _so _long, he and Valka were on good terms with various medical professionals who knew Hiccup still needed to be able to care for his mother as much as possible. So they were being very accommadating.

"Are you done stalking people on the internet?"

"I'm not stalking anyone!"

"Yeah yeah, whatever. I need cuddles."

Laughing to himself at how precocious his girlfriend could be, Hiccup checked a couple more comments before closing his laptop and allowing Astrid the cuddles she so desperately craved (apparently). Said cuddling _was_ very nice, admittedly. Astrid was sweet, nuzzling into him and kissing his jaw before she settled with her head on his chest with a soft sigh.

The next week saw several things for the couple; another night with Eret, where no mention was made of the double murder - one copycat, one Hiccup, nor Eret's part in exposing that to Hiccup in the first place. He was still annoyed people were selling rings like his fathers as 'Night Fury rings' on the internet, and had _accidentally _hacked in and wiped the computers of a couple of people doing so...

Hiccup managed to crank out the newest letter full of details for Astrid, who kissed him very very happily before going off on how she planned to work the details in to her current writing.

And they had lunch with Astrid's mother again. Not nearly as pleasant and comfortable as meals with his mom and Astrid, but she seemed to warm to him more than the last time they had seen each other. And Astrid let him run away to hide in the kitchen when _babies _came up in conversation.

How could Hiccup _ever _be responsible for a child? He was literally a murderer, his reaction to anger often one of violence. And even without that, he had someone to care for already.

Hiccup was _very _grateful Astrid was no more interested in having children than he was, and they'd even discussed the more permanent options of prevention for the future, rather than rely solely on Astrid's staying on birth control forever.

"She's gone, you can come out now."

Astrid retrieved him from the kitchen, approaching slowly to give Hiccup time to tell her not to touch him - he hadn't realised until then, but he was shaking.

"Is she _ever _going to stop saying stuff like that?"

"Eventually, when I tell her I'm going to have to avoid her if she keeps pestering me about it. I'll never let her pressure you love. She doesn't make choices for us."

Slowly wrapping her arms around his trembling frame, Astrid waited for him to calm down. He breathed in her comforting scent, tension slowly leeching from his muscles.

"What would I do without you?"

Astrid looked up at him, with her big blue eyes and sweet smile that made his heart flutter in his chest.

"Lucky for you, you'll never have to worry about that."

Later, when he'd calmed down - with Astrid's expert, naked help - Hiccup reluctantly peeled himself out of her arms, hunting for where she'd tossed his clothes to.

"I gotta get back for mom."

Hiccup didn't resent caring for Valka for a second. He _did_ grumble inwardly about Astrid's boss giving her so many early starts lately though, as it meant less overnight stays. Astrid reached up and pinched his butt, giggling to herself as he turned around to raise an eyebrow at her.

"Don't you glare at me, you like that I like your butt."

Feeling his cheeks flush slightly at that very true fact and the memories attached, Hiccup resumed getting dressed. Astrid knelt on the bed still naked, looking very very tempting.

"Are you still picking me up tomorrow?"

"If milady wishes."

"She does. We're heading back to your place, so you don't need to bring food though."

"You sure?"

Astrid nodded, looking down to her bare belly and pinching a small amount of skin there with a giggle.

"I'm sure. I might actually go to the gym before bed tonight. I'm not giving up your cooking, so if I don't want to have to buy all my clothes in the next size up, I gotta work out."

Most of her clothes _were _quite snug-fitting, and Hiccup knew (from Astrid's complaints) that womens clothing was not very forgiving anyway. So he could understand her watching her weight a bit, even though he knew she wasn't judgemental about weight in general.

"You want a lift there?"

Astrid shook her head, but offered him a smile too.

"Nah. I need to clean up and get dressed, and jogging over there is a good warm up. Thanks though."

"Alright. Be safe. Let me know you got home ok, but I probably won't be up late tonight myself."

"Good. You need sleep. Love you."

She kissed him goodbye before heading in search of a wash cloth and her gym gear. Hiccup headed home himself, checked on his mother and put dinner on before jumping in the shower. Valka lamented with him over dinner about the awkwardness of his earlier brush with Astrid's mother, and reminded him there was less than zero pressure from her about grandchildren.

"It would be nice, but I completely understand why you don't want to go that way son."

"Thanks mom. You taking a bath tonight?"

Valka nodded, and so Hiccup helped her wash her hair, then helped her out of the tub when she struggled to get up herself before drying her hair so both could retire to get some sleep for the night. Astrid hadn't let him know she was back yet, but he knew she sometimes lost track of time at the gym - he'd once been waiting outside to pick her up, and Astrid swore it had only been twenty minutes she was late coming out, when in reality it was over an hour. With his phone next to him so he'd wake when she did send the message, Hiccup let the long day steal his consciousness.

Still no text from Astrid when he woke up. Hiccup did his best not to overreact - his girlfriend was a capable woman. The only person ever to survive being under the knife of the Night Fury. Her phone had probably died while she was at the gym, and she plugged it in when she got home and fell asleep before she had chance to text him. Hiccup left a text for her to get back to him when she had a minute, knowing that if she got home late, she'd oversleep and be in a rush for work.

Hiccup was definitely on edge by the time midday rolled around. He'd tried calling her, but got no answer. Something in his gut twisted oddly as he drove toward her workplace to pick her up, seeing no sign of that distinctive gold-blonde hair anywhere. Gritting his teeth against unexpected social contact, Hiccup got out of his car and headed toward the building on foot, and asked for Astrid at reception.

The answer was not what he wanted to hear.

"Astrid hasn't come in to work today."

-HTTYD-

**I'm sure everything is fine Hiccup!**


	29. Chapter 29

**I ****_love _****the response to last chapter! Hehehehe!**

**This one gets a little... messy toward the end.**

-HTTYD-

_Ok, ok. Don't overreact yet. _

Hiccup tried to straighten his mind out just a bit, needing to be safe to drive. He raced over to Astrid's place and let himself in - he had a key, though he had almost never actually used it before. He held out hope that it was something bad but not terrible - maybe she'd fallen and hadn't been able to get help? It wouldn't have been nice to know she'd been that way all night and all day, but at least he would know where she was...

No such luck.

His heart rate leapt up several beats as Hiccup felt his hands start to shake. He scrolled through his contacts and hit _call, _a sleepy voice answering.

"Hiccup? What's up?"

"Astrid is missing."

Eret seemed to wake up immediately.

"What? Are you sure?"

"Yes! She didn't tell me she got home and then I didn't hear from her this morning and then I went to pick her up from work and she wasn't there!"

Coughing a couple of times, the sleep cleared itself from Eret's voice as he answered.

"Ok" there was a wet swallow, as though he stopped to drink water while _Astrid was missing! _"when did you last definitely know where she was?"

"Last night. When I left, she was heading to the gym. I offered to drive her, but she wanted to jog over there. She always tells me when she gets back home, but I fell asleep waiting for her. Sometimes she takes a really long time in there. I started to worry when she still hadn't gotten back to me this morning, but I was picking her up at lunchtime today. She didn't make it to work. And I'm at her place now, she's not here. There's no sign she made it back from the gym."

No discarded workout gear, no half-rinsed coffee mug in the sink or forgotten bit of toast on the side when she was running late.

"Right. Ok. Well... I'll call work, have the local hospitals checked. Just in case. I'd suggest having them trace her phone too, but I get the feeling you're going to do that yourself."

"I need to get home to my laptop first, so if they can trace her while I'm on my way I'm not going to turn down the help."

Right now, nothing mattered but finding Astrid. If the cops could actually do something _useful_ for once, he wasn't going to argue. He hung up so Eret could call in to his station, barely remembering to lock Astrid's door behind him before he ran to his car and broke the speed limit to get home.

"Son? What's wrong?"

"Astrid's missing."

_"What?"_

Hiccup bade her to wait a minute while he got his laptop, before returning to the kitchen to explain it to her while he booted it up, the setting up of various systems that allowed his more illicit online activities taking longer than a simple press of the on button and a little start up.

_"GPS on her phone turned up by a gym ten minutes from her house. Got two officers going to check it out, but I'm expecting it to be that the phone was dumped. Nobody matching her name or description in any local A&E departments."_

He growled, clenching his fist so hard around his phone that it made an ominous creaking sound.

"What is it you're looking for?"

Valka asked, probably the only person in the world other than Astrid to feel safe around Hiccup in such a black, black mood.

"I think... I think that someone _took_ Astrid. To get _my_ attention. The Night Fury's attention. And so... I have to look where the Night Fury fans are."

He left a program running to search for a few key words on public forums, before using a few others to find his way deeper in to the internet, where crime was commonplace and everything available for a price.

It didn't take him long to find something he was looking for.

_"Well, his days are numbered."_

_"Yeah. From what I hear, he's lucky not to have gotten a beating from Hofferson anyway."_

There were a dozen or so messages like it, none being too specific, but several of them clearly saying that somebody had Astrid, and it was because of Hiccup. One had posted a link. His stomach twisted painfully, sick with what he might see, but he couldn't help clicking on it.

"Is that her?"

Hiccup jumped, realising his mother had come around behind him to watch what he was doing.

"Yeah."

She looked unconscious. Tied to something that he thought might be a heavy wooden beam, still wearing her running shorts and the jacket she always wore out at night - it got _cold _when she was at the gym past midnight, after all. Hiccup was initially relieved to see her clothing intact, then realised there were red smears and splotches on the blue fabric.

Astrid's blood.

"What is all this?"

"Taunting me. Telling me to come and get her. And when I do, they'll have video of me. Not that it's gonna do them much good, having a video of their own murder, but hey, if that's their dying wish."

Valka didn't even try to talk him down. She knew the second Hiccup said someone had Astrid that her son would have blood on his hands again soon.

Hiccup tweaked a few settings, pulled out one of his previously unused screen names for the forum that could be discarded when he was done, and began to type.

**_"I am the Night Fury. This is a one time offer. Someone know's who has her, and they are going to tell me. In return, you can have whatever you want, other than my true identity. Details of every kill, advice on how to avoid detection. If you have a good enough reason and they're local enough, I'll make someone disappear from your life if that's what it takes. Just tell me where she is, and I promise that camera show will get a lot more interesting."_**

He pressed enter, and he waited, the anger churning in his belly growing by the minute.

A private message popped up in the corner.

"_Prove it."_

**"How?"**

It took them a minute to come up with something, during which time Hiccup deleted three other messages that read "are you really the Night Fury?" or words to that effect. Finally, the first one messaged back with a half dozen questions about various, very specific details. Hiccup answered them quickly, hoping this person was actually going to come through.

_"Alright. I don't know where he is, but I do know **who** he is. I traded some hardcore goreporn with him a few months back, we got chatting, and he mentioned on one of those boards that he was going to meet you."  
_

**"I'll take what I can get. What's his name?"**

_"Ah ah. First, I want to know what I'm getting in return."_

**"What do you want?"**

All this time being wasted that Hiccup should be looking for Astrid. He kept his eye on the stream, seeing the twitches and small movements that said Astrid was coming around.

_"You're gonna kill this guy right?"_

**"Obviously."**

The request itself, Hiccup wasn't too surprised by.

**"Deal. Name?"**

Hiccup called Eret back as soon as he had a name, taking note of the additional warnings that the livestream wasn't the only camera in the house, and that the guy had an impressive knife collection.

"I need an address."

"Why are you asking me?"

"Because your system changed it's firewall, and it's going to take me like fifteen minutes to break in. You are quicker."

Eret sighed.

"I can't just give you someones address."

"Eret Hunter, if you make me take the time to break in to your records, and something happens to Astrid because you finally grew a damn conscience, I _swear _you will regret it."

Playing with Eret had been fun, something he and Astrid had found entertaining, sure. But he was _nothing _to Hiccup compared to Astrid, and if he had to scare Eret in to doing what he needed, he would.

"Alright. But call me from your other phone. Ten minutes. Don't be in your house when you call."

Hiccup understood; Eret was covering himself now. If he searched that address while on the phone to Hiccup, and a dead body turned up there later? That was going to be something neither of them could explain away. Standing up to get his clothes, Hiccup caught sight of his mother and saw the worry in her face.

"Take your meds, get some rest. Don't talk to the weirdos on the internet. Actually, I wouldn't watch that stream for too long once you see me on it. Probably going to get messy."

He shoved his clothes in to a duffel bag; it was daylight out, he couldn't just stroll around in full Night Fury gear. Then he got the rest of his things, and returned to his mother at her request. She kissed his forehead, smoothing his hair back.

"Bring her home, but be careful."

* * *

_Ow. Ow. Ow._

Those were her first thoughts. Astrid blinked blearily, feeling the pain on the back of her head throb in time with her pulse. Her skin felt tacky, something dried on the back of her neck. She really hoped it was blood, not something... else.

Her vision was a little blurred, and enough conversations with Hiccup about varying degrees of head trauma told her she'd been hit pretty damn hard with something, between the blood and the dizziness. Trying to focus, she saw a little red light in the distance. 'The distance' turned out to be the other end of a room, and the red light a camera. She made to lift her hands to rub at her face, but they wouldn't move.

That was when she realised she was tied up. Her ankles were tied together too. It felt like something out of a cheesy TV show. Especially when she realised the weird feeling on her face was a cloth gag, preventing her from calling out and informing whatever idiot it was that was holding her there that they were _so _dead. And that was no idle threat. Astrid was dating a serial killer.

Which was probably what got her kidnapped in the first place. Hiccup was going to say 'I told you so' about those damned letters, she just knew it.

"Oh. You're awake."

She wasn't sure what she was expecting, but... it wasn't that. This guy didn't look much like a fan of serial killers, or the type to kidnap somebody. Then again, Hiccup had taught her looks could be deceiving.

Still, in his blue jeans and white button up shirt, short brown hair just long enough to sweep across his forehead, Astrid wouldn't have glanced twice at this guy in the street. She growled through the gag, still feeling dizzy.

"Don't worry. I'm sure he'll be here soon. Then the fun can start."

"The fun?"

It was muffled, but he obviously understood.

"The Night Fury likes you. He'll be so happy I tied you up ready for him. We're gonna have so much fun with you, and I'll get to learn from the best!"

Oh wow, this guy was _reallyyyy _in the deep end of la la land. The way he leered at Astrid's bare legs, running shorts not covering much of her, made panic roll through her despite herself. She was already worried what he might have done while she was unconscious.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to do anything before he gets here. I promised myself I'd let him go first."

Did this guy really think Hiccup was going to turn up and be thrilled to have some kind of team rape opportunity? When the Night Fury was known for _hating _rapists?

"I can see why he likes you though. Real pretty one, you are."

If she could have done, she'd have spat in his face. As it was, she could only glare as best she could and try not to vomit on her gag as nausea welled again. Damned head injuries.

"I didn't tell him where to find us, but he's good. He'll work it out."

The guy carried on talking, mostly to himself, before crossing the room and starting to open up a big cabinet that had four or five locks on. Gods only knew what the guy kept in there. He'd just opened the last one and started to open the doors when there was a new sound. Astrid did her best not to turn around and draw attention, but he'd heard it too.

"Maybe he's here!"

If he was, this guy was awful excited to have his throat ripped out. He rushed off toward the creaking floorboard in the next room... and came back through the door with quite some force and a loud yelp. Stumbling and landing on the floor, he looked equal parts enthralled and petrified as the Night Fury stood over him.

It took everything in Astrid not to shout Hiccup's name in relief. The helmet-clad head turned toward Astrid, and there was a tiny relaxation in the set of his shoulders when he saw Astrid alive and relatively unharmed.

Then he kicked the guy who'd taken her pretty hard.

"I did it for you! I know you like her, I thought it would make a nice gift."

Hiccup leant down and wrapped his gloved fingers around the mans throat, using the grip to hoist him back to a clumsy standing position before throwing him several feet away. When he fell, the guy's head thumped against the ground. He didn't move. Hiccup walked over to Astrid, and pulled the cloth gag away from her face right away.

"I'm ok."

She murmured quietly, feeling him run his fingers over her head to check for injuries and hissing when he found the egg-sized lump on the back of her head. There was a low growl in his throat as he got up - leaving her tied up for the moment, but Astrid knew he couldn't simply walk out of there with her.. _Especially _on camera.

Astrid learned what was in the cabinet a minute later, when Hiccup started pulling various knives out of it. Some gleaming menacingly, others ornate and delicate in his big hands. Hiccup stood making several choices, testing the sharpness by gouging lines in the cabinet's wooden frame.

He didn't start there though. Almost the second the 'fan' who kidnapped Astrid began to come around, Hiccup tossed him around the room, ignoring any of the words babbled in his direction, pleas for mercy and teaching falling on deaf ears. Blood spattered the walls, the floor, even Astrid herself before Hiccup dropped the half-dead body in front of the camera.

The Night Fury knew the limits of the human body better than most, and so Hiccup knew exactly how to stick the guy with his own knife collection in spots that would cause excruciating pain without actually killing him... yet. The screams were piercing, and Astrid completely appreciated why Hiccup had never agreed to let her see him 'in action' before. It was as raw and brutal as it was entrancing.

"Don't struggle."

Hiccup murmured, barely audible as he undid the ropes that bound her arms, hefting her a little roughly out of that room and dropping her in what looked like the kidnappers kitchen. Her legs were still tied, though once Hiccup re-did the knots behind her back to hold her arms, he loosened the knots on her legs. She bit back a joke about how it was usually _her _tying _him _up.

"When I'm done, I'll have someone come get you, but this _can't_ look like a lovers rescue."

It was a whisper, and when Astrid was looking around her, she spotted another camera. She waited for him to be over her again, blocking her from camera-view.

"I know."

He rubbed his gloved thumb across her cheek, blood smearing there but Astrid ignored it. Hiccup turned on the gas cooker, using the flame to heat up his ring. He made sure it was all off before he left again, and Astrid _heard _the sizzle before she heard the scream.

Hiccup always waited until they were dead for that. Obviously, kidnapping Astrid had him making an exception.

At first, she thought he'd left the gas on. Then she realised she could smell lighter fluid. Was he...

The _whoomph _of flames catching was louder than she'd expected, and there was a flickering light source that wasn't there before. The screaming stopped pretty quickly.

Hiccup came back to her, holding a phone in his hand that he tapped 999 in to. In his other hand was an address scrawled on paper. He held the phone to Astrid's ear.

"999 Operator, which emergency service do you require?"

When he left, Hiccup closed the door to the kitchen and covered the crack at the bottom with something - keeping the smoke out and limiting how much burning human flesh Astrid had to breathe in. She knew he _hated _leaving her behind, but if Astrid could have spoke candidly, she'd have told him to do it anyway, to get away before the emergency services arrived. She'd be fine on her own for a bit if it meant Hiccup not being caught and arrested.

It wasn't that long anyway, really. There was yelling as someone rushed to put out the dead guy, then there was shuffling and muffled conversation before the kitchen door was thrown open. Eret stood there, wide eyed at the state of her.

"Any chance you're gonna untie me?"

That seemed to shock him in to action, and he hastened to comply, freeing Astrid's arms and legs.

"Are you hurt?"

"Only a bit. Most of the blood is his."

She gestured to the back of her head, wincing when Eret touched it gently before he turned and called for a paramedic to come and tend to her.

"You'll have to be processed."

"Whatever. Can you call Hiccup and have him come to wherever you take me?"

"Sure."

Astrid went compliantly, someone actually going to the absolutely useless lengths of covering what was left of the body with a hastily erected sheet between her and it, as though Astrid had survived watching the Night Fury in action only to fall apart at what was left.

"Astrid! Are you alright?"

Hiccup looked every inch the panicked boyfriend, relieved to see her and having to be restrained from hugging her by a nearby police officer, as though he had no idea she was covered in evidence. He shoved their arm away from him, scowling.

"What happened to you? I was so worried!"

Everyone was listening in then, and Astrid did her best to sound like it was a shock, a surreal event, not the wholly expected circumstance of her boyfriend coming to her aid.

"The... the Night Fury saved me."

-HTTYD-

**Well, what did he think was gonna happen when he messed with the Night Fury's favourite?**


	30. Chapter 30

**Y'all surprised me with the love for last chapter, but it's amazing. Serialcup appreciates you all.  
**

-HTTYD-

"Eret, a word?"

Eret jumped, turning to find his boss. Swallowing thickly - _this can't be good _\- Eret tore his eyes away from where Astrid was being processed and Hiccup was hovering anxiously.

"Yeah?"

They walked around a corner, away from the bulk of people hanging around Astrid, the spectacle of someone surviving the Night Fury.

Just like Heather. A friend of Astrid's... no _wonder _the Night Fury let her go.

"I hope you have a good explanation for why you searched for the name and address of the most recent Night Fury victim a short while before they were murdered, without mentioning it to anybody."

His heart kicked in his chest, though he was braced for this line of questioning - what they did on their work computers was logged.

"It was a call from a confidential informant who said he thought it was relevant, but he had nothing to back it up with, and when I searched the name, the guy had no record of _anything, _let alone a connection to Astrid. We didn't know until she was found that the guy was a Night Fury nut."

Crossing his arms, his boss looked Eret over carefully.

"Is that everything?"

"What do you mean?"

"Just... wondering if there's anything else you need to tell me. You requested the transfer to work the Night Fury case. You've lived and breathed this case the entire time. And now, when someone offered you possible information on Hofferson, the killers _favourite_ being kidnapped, you just... dismissed it?"

Eret shrugged, feeling a lot like a child in trouble.

"It seemed like a bogus lead. Obviously, it wasn't. I... I made a mistake."

That much was true. Except Eret's mistake was getting involved with Hiccup and Astrid to begin with. It wasn't quite a mistake he regretted yet...

"Yes. You did. I've been worried you were too close to this case for a while now... I'm strongly considering having you transferred out before you burn out over this. You're not thinking clearly."

"And I don't get a say in this?"

"I haven't decided yet. But I heard from Teeny that your father is sick... might be worth thinking about moving closer to him."

Eret frowned.

"I... I guess I'll think about it sir."

"Alright. Go on. This is still your case for now, but make sure your notes are thorough in case there's a handover. And you're not to question Hofferson alone. She's unofficially cleared of suspicion of _being _the Night Fury, we can't risk her being able to lie about anything after all the times she was pulled in or our asses will be on the line for a harrassment lawsuit."

"Yes sir. Do hospital staff count as not alone?"

"I'll sit in, since I'm here. But she's being examined right now, so let's go get a coffee."

Still heart-poundingly terrified he was secretly under suspicion, Eret didn't really feel like caffeine would help him any. But it would probably have been more suspicious to say no.

The hospital coffee was revolting, so at least he had a reasonable excuse not to drink much of it. They sat in silence for at least fifteen minutes, before Eret's stomach flipped at a familiar voice.

"Yeah. Mild concussion, they think he hit her with a brick. So when she's released, I'll be bringing her back with me since she has to be supervised and she thinks her mother will drive her crazy. No, they're taking pictures now, she told me to go eat something and call you, since no phones allowed in there."

Hiccup shuffled past them, looking every bit as unsuspecting and awkward as he ever did, on the phone to reassure his mother about his girlfriends condition. Eret had never met the woman properly, just knew Hiccup's life revolved around two women.

And murder. But that was more of a secret than Valka or Astrid.

He barely spared the two cops a glance, buying a snack bar from the cafe counter and bidding his mother farewell before turning to go back up to Astrid.

"Mr Haddock?"

Hiccup all but leapt out of his skin, shrinking in on himself a bit. He was obviously not expecting to be addressed, but his affect as a scared, jumpy recluse was flawless.

"Who are you?"

He looked to Eret for explanation.

"He's my boss. How is Astrid?"

"She'll be ok. No thanks to the police, I hear. I have to get back. If you feel like being useful for a change, you can make sure the horde outside is gone when she's discharged."

He glared in the direction of the hospital entrance, where news reporters were lurking; Heather's identity was largely protected because of how it went down, but somewhere between her kidnap and her rescue, Astrid's name had been leaked, and with three police cars outside, the hospital was easy to spot.

"We can't make the press leave."

"Then what good are you? Can't catch serial killers, couldn't find Astrid until she called you herself, and can't stop her being harassed by vultures from trashy newspapers. To protect and serve, huh?"

Hiccup walked off, limp more pronounced than usual. Eret supposed he'd put himself through a lot, tracking Astrid down and killing her kidnapper and probably pacing anxiously back and forth. Hiccup seemed like a pacer.

"Well, guess he's got no love for the police force."

"We _did_ keep trying to pin murders on his girlfriend."

Eret reasoned, and his boss chuckled.

"Yeah, fair enough. Probably wouldn't endear them to me."

* * *

"Absolutely not!"

Astrid crossed her arms, scowling.

"It's your choice, but wouldn't you rather know?"

Astrid continued to glare.

"That didn't happen! The creep said he was waiting for the Night Fury to go first. I came to with my clothes still on."

Hiccup tried to look reasonable and placate her, Astrid just dying for a _shower_ after being covered in kidnapper-blood and poked at with the various implements they used to scrape bits of evidence off her.

"They said it's your choice, but wouldn't you rather be sure?"

Astrid softened, just a little at the concern in his voice.

"Sure. But I had sex with Hiccup yesterday evening, pretty much right before I was jumped by Mr Crispy."

Her boyfriend snorted, shaking his head. The nurse looked scandalised.

"I'm a murder mystery writer, I'm used to making light hearted jokes. It's not usually _real._"

Still a little shocked, the nurse nodded slowly.

"We can do an external exam, and only worry about internal if anything looks concerning?"

"Can Hiccup stay with me?"

He was allowed to, so Astrid reluctantly let them do the little check up to make absolutely sure she wasn't sexually assaulted while unconscious. He squeezed her hand when Astrid tensed; getting naked for Hiccup was one thing, but having a total stranger that close to her groin right after she had her sense of safety and security somewhat shaken was something else entirely.

"I don't see any signs of external trauma. We can still do tests, though we'd need samples from your boyfriend if you didn't use a condom, to eliminate his DNA."

Astrid shook her head. She was reassured, and letting them take Hiccup's DNA was just not going to happen.

"No. I'm good. Anything else, or can I go off with Hiccup and take a reallyyyy long shower?"

"I think the police want to question you first, though as you're recovering from a concussion, I'm sure you can delay that. And on the same note, if you shower or bathe, you shouldn't be alone. Fainting and dizziness are not unheard of hours or even days after."

Astrid looked at Hiccup.

"Bad news, you'll have to watch me while I'm wet and naked. I'm sure you will find a way to struggle on."

He covered his face with a hand, shaking his head. Astrid grinned, trying to ignore the persistent ache in the back of her head.

"I better talk to the cops, or they might turn up at your place later."

Hiccup tensed all over, and Astrid reached to squeeze his hand. She wasn't going to let that happen.

Eret and some guy introduced as his superior officer turned up soon enough, and pulled up chairs to the side of her bed after being chided by the nurse to be gentle with her. Hiccup stood off to the side, arms crossed, posture ramrod straight, looking as uncomfortable as possible with the police presence.

"So, can you tell us what happened?"

"I got kidnapped by some asshole who wanted to meet the Night Fury. Guess he got his dying wish."

"Is that all you can tell us?"

Astrid shrugged, taking a sip of water from her bedside glass.

"Did you find my phone?"

Eret nodded.

"We have it in evidence. You can get it back later."

"Good. Can I go now? I want a shower, and food, and sleep."

"One moment" Eret's boss turned away, flagging down a nurse "did you take blood and urine samples from her?"

"You could ask _her _yourself" Astrid scowled "and no, they didn't."

"Well, it's worth doing. You might have been drugged for all we know."

Astrid sighed, but reluctantly agreed to let them steal her blood.

"I'm not peeing in a cup. I don't even think I could aim that well. Still dizzy and all."

_Finally,_ Astrid was allowed to leave. She was not impressed by the presence of news reporters outside, but the hospital kindly let her escape out the back, and Hiccup was so adept at blending in to the background, he was able to slip past the crowd and fetch his car. By the time they realised she was leaving, they were gone.

"Can you sleep after a concussion?"

"Yes. It's an old myth that you can't. If you feel up to it, you should do the whole report to the cops thing after a shower and food and a nap. Then we're done with them."

Humming, Astrid nodded.

"Good idea."

"Mom was worried, you know."

Still sure Valka wasn't terribly fond of her, Astrid blinked in surprise.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Her last words to me were 'bring her home, but be careful'. I know she's been reticent to accept a new person in our lives, but she does care about you."

Once they were back in his home, Hiccup fussed around Astrid constantly. After hugging his mother and checking she was alright, Hiccup made Astrid tea to tide her over while he cooked her food, and then ran her a bath, tenderly washing remnants of dried blood from her skin and apologising when he washed the blood out of her hair, hearing her hiss as it stung on the injured spot.

It was surreal, to be so gentled by someone who she'd seen push a human body to almost unimaginable limits right before her eyes. Hiccup helped her stand with the same hidden strength that let him throw somebody clear across a room, and combed fingers that had choked a man through her damp hair before wringing all the moisture out and loosely braiding it for her.

She didn't notice until he'd had his hands in the water, but Hiccup's knuckles were swollen and bruised. He must have used makeup to cover it up, and it washed off when he bathed Astrid.

"So... what was with the fire? Were you just _really _mad?"

"Yes, but that's why I branded his face while he was still breathing. The fire was... I guess I'd call it the price I paid for your location."

Astrid raised an eyebrow, confused.

"What?"

"I'll explain in the kitchen, cus mom wants answers too and I don't want to go through it twice."

He made her more tea, of course, and even microwaved a couple of chocolate chip cookies for just long enough that the chips were gooey to go with it. Astrid let him, knowing Hiccup couldn't quite help himself.

"So... as soon as I realised you were gone, I went online. It became obvious pretty fast that this guy had been bragging about what he was gonna do to you, to get to me. And there was a livestream linked in. So... I posted a message for information. Someone knew who he was, and he traded me the guys name for a promise that when I killed him, I'd use fire. It was his particular... fetish, but there's not a lot of material for it apparently. I called Eret for the address. And then I came to get you."

"When did you realise I was missing?"

"Something felt off last night, but I fell asleep too soon. And then this morning, I was going a liiiittle batty but tried to convince myself it was just you were in a rush. Then I went to pick you up, and you weren't at work, so I went to your place, and it was obvious you'd never come back from the gym. I called Eret to report you missing."

They filled each other in on the gaps, and then Astrid _really _needed to go lie down. Just before she was about to curl up in Hiccup's bed and never move again, there was a knock at the door. All three sharing a look, Hiccup got up hesitantly and headed over, turning back to where Astrid hovered in the doorway.

"It's Eret... I'm gonna invite him in, but just for a minute."

Valka winced, but she seemed to be perfectly aware Hiccup could evict Eret by lethal force if need be. Astrid shuffled over to her boyfriend - that way, Eret only needed to be in the hallway. He seemed as surprised as anyone to be let in, hovering awkwardly for someone who'd had sex with both of them on multiple occasions.

"What is it?"

"I came to tell you... I'm leaving."

"Leaving... us? Your job? The city?"

"All of the above. I'm being transferred back to where I came from. My boss is worried the Night Fury case is going to burn me out, and my dads sick, so I'm gonna go back and help take care of him."

Hiccup shrugged stiffly.

"I can respect that. Why the sudden change?"

Eret drew in a deep breath, exhaled sharply.

"Because I cannot keep pretending to work this case, knowing what I know. And... I'm scared."

"Of... me?"

"No. Of _me. _I mean, I helped you find him and you set that guy on fire while he was _still alive-_"

Hiccup actually rolled his eyes and cut Eret off.

"So? I had to, to find Astrid. And besides, he deserved it for hurting her."

Eret rocked from one foot to the other a couple of times.

"That's my point. It should horrify me, and it doesn't. Not as much as it should. I have to get away from you, because I'm afraid of who I'll become if I don't."

Astrid was surprised in some ways, and not in others.

"Well, we can't stop you. I hope you find a little peace."

"Me too. For what it's worth... I'm glad you're ok Astrid. And with me gone, you should be more careful. Fresh eyes and all."

Hiccup rolled his shoulders in a lazy shrug, looking perfectly at ease.

"I'm not worried. But thanks. When do you leave?"

"When my transfer goes through, but I'm officially handing the Night Fury case over tomorrow. Will you be going in to the station at any point?"

Astrid nodded.

"I was about to get a nap, then go in and try to give enough details that your boss leaves me alone."

That was going to be tricky, but at least if she mixed up _Hiccup _and _the Night Fury,_ she could blame her concussion.

"Guess I'll probably see you there then."

Eret didn't linger, and Astrid was a little disappointed to see him go, but supposed she could _sort of _understand why he wanted to get away. He hadn't become a police officer to aid a serial killer. He probably hadn't planned to fuck one either, but these things happened.

Hiccup locked the door behind him, and turned to kiss her temple. Astrid hummed, smiling.

"Guess it's just the three of us again."

"Hey, works for me. Now I really need to take a nap."

Hiccup chuckled, arm sliding around her side.

"I'll tuck you in."

-HTTYD-

**I am very sure you all have more questions still, but I'm not done answering them all yet. Patienceeeee.**


	31. Chapter 31

**Yes, I know, Eret lived! I'm surprised how surprised everyone was by that.**

-HTTYD-

Practically asleep before her head hit the pillow, Astrid slept pretty deeply and dreamlessly for an hour or so. Hiccup nudged her awake at the requested time; she did want to get the police interview out of the way, after all. Then they could get on with their lives. He was tapping away on his laptop next to her, occasionally shaking out his stiff, swollen hand.

"What're you doing?"

She mumbled, yawning as she reluctantly shifted from her comfy, horizontal, buried-in-blankets position. Hiccup continued to type, but he did answer her.

"Oh. I stole the guys hard drive while we were there, cloned it and I'm just digging my way through it now."

Shaking her head to clear the sleepiness and regretting it a second later, Astrid whined in discomfort to get it out of her system before trying to ignore the throb of pain in her head.

"Still sore?"

"Mmm. Not as bad as earlier, and I feel _way _better after a bath and a nap. So, anything exciting?"

"Well, I'm going through most recently updated before I got there. He wrote about me a lot. I think he was _trying_ to write some kind of analysis of me."

Astrid rolled her eyes, shifting to get comfy before resting her head on Hiccup's thigh, mewling until he petted her gently.

"This guy thought you'd be thrilled to get the chance to rape me, I don't trust his psychology skills much."

"Oh yeah, he wrote about that. According to him, I kill rapists to kill myself, as a way to deal with my own internalised desires, as he calls it. Basically, by kidnapping you, he felt he was giving me two things I wanted; you, and the 'freedom' I was denying myself. I mean, this guy was clearly completely off his head. Although, he did also theorise that you secretly liked the Night Fury back, and would have been only too happy to get some serial killer sex."

She couldn't suppress a giggle.

"Well, _some_ of that second bit is kind of right. I didn't know you were a serial killer before we had sex though. The rest is absolute madness."

"Yeah. Well, now he's in a morgue and a few particularly weird spank banks I never ever want to visit."

Astrid immediately dismissed that thought before it could fully enter her head, opting to focus on other things.

"You think anyone recorded the livestream?"

"Oh, most definitely. Why? Was front row seat not close enough?"

"I'm just thinking about how you were probably pretty visible on the stream. Even in the Night Fury get up, there's probably some technology nerd somewhere who could work out your height and frame from it. And if the video footage made it on to the surface web where anyone can find it, then you might have to change your outfit."

Hiccup frowned, hand stilling on her hair for a minute before resuming his petting of her.

"That's a good point. Motorcycle gear is one thing, but my helmet is a custom job. I might have to fiddle with it."

"If you could move in it, might be worth getting a bigger jacket too. Something to bulk you out a bit more."

"Maybe. I can't change my trousers, they have a hidden zip for access to my prosthetic and ordering a new pair of those would probably raise a red flag somewhere."

Astrid hummed, nodding before regretting it as her head twinged.

"Want to check on your mom, and then we go get the cops out of the way?"

"Sure... unless you wanted to talk first."

Though he had come on in quite a few leaps and bounds since they met, deep conversation was not something _Hiccup _usually initiated, and the way he said 'talk' implied more than just a casual chat.

"About what?"

"Astrid... you _saw _me. You can't tell me it didn't affect you, seeing that, even with someone as... _accepting_ as you."

She hadn't really taken the time to think about it, not yet. Focused more on everything else, her own feelings were mixed and still a tangled, confused mess if she was honest.

"I... think this conversation should wait til after we're done with the police. I need to focus on not giving away too much."

Hiccup sighed, and nodded.

"Fair enough. I'll leave you to wake up properly. The doctor said to be careful with caffeine after a concussion, but do you want some tea before we go?"

No coffee, _and _she had to deal with the police? Astrid could have cried.

"You have green tea in right?" Hiccup nodded "then yes please."

She kissed him before letting him up, wanting to reassure Hiccup that whatever conversation they had later, she hadn't suddenly had some kind of 'come to her senses and was leaving him' moment, which she was _sure _was going on somewhere in that strange head of his.

Reluctantly getting up, Astrid headed to the bathroom first, then got dressed and ambled to the kitchen, finding a steaming mug of green tea and Hiccup chatting to his mom while holding an ice pack on his hand. Valka bade them farewell as Hiccup poured Astrid's second green tea in to a travel mug, checked his mom had everything she needed and painstakingly re-applied makeup to his bruised hand, pocketing the concealer in case he smudged it in the car.

"Ready to go?"

"Let's get this over with. We might meet our new best friend."

Hiccup raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Eret said he was handing over the case. Someone else might now be up our ass with murder investigations."

"Oh. Yeah. We're not trying to seduce this one."

"Spoilsport."

He rolled his eyes as they headed to the car.

"You haven't even met them yet."

"So? I have broad tastes."

He snorted, opening the door for her before circling to get in himself. Astrid tried not to let her sore head rest against the seat too much, and Hiccup was nice enough to be careful with the speed bumps on the roads as they went along.

It hadn't been _that _long since she was discharged from hospital. A few hours, at most, really. But already, it seemed Eret had gone ahead and 'handed over', and Astrid couldn't see him anywhere - not even in the 'Night Fury room', which the door was open to.

"Ah. Miss Hofferson. How are you feeling?"

The guy she vaguely remembered Eret introducing as his superior spotted them first, coming over. Hiccup's hand tightened around hers.

"Like I got clocked in the back of the head and then some rude guy tried to question me before I was allowed a shower and a sleep."

He nodded.

"Fair enough. Inspector Hunter is being reassigned, so you'll be talking with me and the new officer assigned to the Night Fury case."

She'd been expecting Teeny, the one who was never far from Eret when they were in the station, and who, according to Hiccup (who'd been in the station once before even Astrid for his line up), had been on the case longer than Eret.

Instead, they were introduced to somebody new.

"This is Superintendent Grimborn."

"Oh, call me Viggo, please. I hear you had quite the experience, Miss Hofferson."

Something about him put Astrid on edge immediately. He was perfectly presented, with neat hair and a groomed goatee, uniform pressed to within an inch of its life and straining around a strong build. Eret had been a little... looser, with his shoulder length hair always threatening to escape its tie and the tattoo on his neck.

But the really unsettling thing about Grimborn was his _eyes. _They were a dark, dark brown, seeming almost black when shadows crossed his face. And honestly, Astrid felt a bit like they saw right through her.

"You'll have to forgive me, I'm still concussed so might not be totally clear."

Grimborn nodded slowly, looking at Hiccup next. Astrid did the same.

If they weren't in the middle of a police station, Astrid would have thought she was watching Hiccup hunt, because he looked simultaneously eerily calm and absolutely murderous.

"Of course. Shall we?"

"Sure. You're new around here. Bringing in the big guns now?"

She suspected Eret's boss had been considering moving him along already when Astrid was kidnapped, otherwise it seemed a little too swift.

"Oh, I volunteered when I heard my colleagues were struggling. Worry not, Miss Hofferson, I have an excellent case closure rate."

_Well, I think you've met your match Grimborn, _Astrid thought to herself as they headed to an interview room.

"So, what can you tell us about what happened? What do you remember?"

Though his hand stayed laced through Astrid's the entire time, Hiccup's eyes never left Viggo's. Astrid did her best to remain semi-vague without outright lying; if the video footage _did _make it out there, then she didn't want to risk being caught in a blatant lie.

"I think they sort of... forgot I was there, to be honest."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well, I was left tied up while they beat the guy up, then spent ages going through the guys knife collection. Then I got tied up in the kitchen instead, for a change. I think it was the kitchen. I remember smelling gas, so I guess there was an oven."

Grimborn didn't write a single thing down, fingers steepled just in front of his face and only moved so he could speak clearly to her.

"Did they say anything to you?"

"Not that I remember. There was a lot going on, and I was kinda fuzzy in places."

"Yes. You had traces of a sedative in your blood test, I believe."

That was news to her, but given how long she was unconscious, Astrid wasn't all that surprised. She sipped from her half-cold green tea, stomach turning over slightly when Grimborn turned his attention to Hiccup.

"And where were you while all this was going on?"

_Please be calm, I know you hate this. _

"Sleeping. Then I reported her missing. I was told to stay home and wait, which I did because I had to take care of my mom. She's sick. I was still about to go out looking for Astrid when I got the call she'd been found."

"You just... waited?"

Hiccup scowled. Astrid hoped he didn't snap back.

"It took a serial murderer to find Astrid, I'm not sure what _I _could have done."

Hopefully his bad mood was played off as frustration, or maybe even shame that he hadn't been able to help her.

"I see."

Wow. Grimborn _really _had a knack for pushing Hiccup's buttons, already. Astrid squeezed his hand gently, pulling Hiccup's attention over to her instead.

"It's ok. I'm ok now."

He nodded slowly, squeezing her hand back.

"Well, unless there's anything more you have to tell us, I think we can wrap this up and let you get back to your recovery, Miss Hofferson. Would you like some recommendations for counsellors?"

"What for?"

"Well, you endured quite the trauma. Kidnapped, _and _witnessing a murder? I would think some form of therapy is necessary."

Oh. Right. Astrid should probably agree with that.

"Uh. Maybe later, when I don't feel like my brain is trying to escape from my skull. One thing at a time, yanno?"

"Of course, of course. Well, thank you for your time, and your help. Let us hope the Night Fury made a mistake in coming out of hiding."

"Are you saying saving me was a mistake?"

That was the first time this Grimborn character looked uncomfortable, though it was only for a second or two.

"No, but it does not excuse their behaviour."

Astrid shrugged, and left it hanging like that as Hiccup got up, helping her to her feet.

"Your place or mine?"

"Yours. Doctors orders."

Hiccup let out a light chuckle, nodding and the two of them left. Astrid was _acutely _aware that Grimborn was watching them, could feel those dark eyes boring in to their backs. Her boyfriend wisely waited to react until they were in the car, his face darkening.

"Babe?"

"I'm fine. I just... don't like him."

"Me either. If he wasn't wearing a uniform, I'd have thought he was a murder suspect."

Hiccup snorted.

"I don't think uniforms and murder and mutually exclusive. Remember the copycat?"

"Yeah... that wasn't even that long ago, either. You've had to come up to the surface a little more lately."

"Yeah. Mom's gonna give me a lecture soon, I just know it. Come on, let's get you back to bed."

Valka was waiting up for them, to hear how it went.

"We met the new lead on the case."

"Oh?"

Astrid picked up while Hiccup went to make tea, obviously needing to do something with the nervous energy jittering inside him.

"Yeah. He's kind of... intense. Definitely smart. Not gonna be as easy to mess with as Eret, but since I am no longer a Night Fury suspect, I don't _need _to mess with him really."

Hiccup placed her steaming green tea down before reaching in to the fridge for milk, eyes still a little dark.

"He definitely thinks something is up with me. The temptation to just get rid of him is pretty strong, not gonna lie."

Valka tsked, shaking her head at her son.

"I understand, but until you think he actually suspects you, stop putting yourself in the line of fire so easily."

"So if I think he suspects me, you won't scold me for taking him out?"

Hiccup's wry grin made it look like they were bantering about curfews or messy bedrooms, not murder to cover up more murder. Valka rolled her eyes, then thanked him for her tea. They drank in relative silence before Hiccup saw his mother to bed, then came to retrieve Astrid for the same thing.

"When was the last time you slept?"

Astrid had been clocked in the head and sedated, but she'd also had a nap. Hiccup looked _exhausted, _dark circles really starting to show under his eyes now the spark of rage toward Viggo Grimborn had faded somewhat in his familiar, safe surroundings.

"Uh. Before I reported you missing. Been a busy couple of days though, I admit. I know we need to talk, but do you mind if I take some painkillers and conk out right now? My leg and hands are killing me."

"Sure. I could do with more sleep anyway. And maybe a conversation about watching you kill someone is better to have well rested and slightly more recovered from concussion."

Hiccup nodded, moving to brush his teeth and undress before crawling in to bed and washing down his heavy duty pain relief with the water bottle on his bedside. He waited for Astrid to join him, humming when she ran her fingers through his hair; she could still smell the shampoo there, from when he'd undoubtedly taken a shower to wash off the blood and burning smell that would have lingered.

He was asleep in minutes, face pressed in to the cotton of her t-shirt, her fingers still resting against his scalp. Honestly, she needed the extra time to figure out how the _Hel _they were going to talk about what happened.

She hadn't really expected it... but a part of her _did _feel scared by it.

-HTTYD-

**Ooooooh!**


	32. Chapter 32

**Ah, a nice lil bit of Serialcup.**

-HTTYD-

Whether she'd had a shred of self-preservation knocked in to her, or just had some solid proof shoved in front of her face, Astrid wasn't sure, but she did feel a _tiny _spark of worry deep inside herself when debating how to talk to Hiccup about what had happened.

He was getting his mom up and ready for the day. Or night. Astrid wasn't totally sure what time it was outside, everything thrown off by injury and the like. She frowned when something started buzzing nearby, then realised it was her own phone. Glancing at the screen, Astrid groaned and flopped back on the pillow.

"Hello?"

_"Astrid! Why in all the gods names have I had to hear about you being **kidnapped **through the news?"_

Astrid winced.

"Because I've been unconscious for most of the time since I was found, and I have a concussion so I haven't been thinking very clearly. I'm fine, other than that. You can relax."

It was probably a little shameful that she hadn't bothered to contact her mother, but with everything going on, it really _had _slipped her mind.

_"So, what really happened to you?"_

"Oh, not now, please. I promise once I'm feeling up to it, I'll tell you all I can tell you, but right now I need more sleep."

That was a lie, but gods Astrid only had so much energy for difficult conversations and one was more pressing right now.

_"Are you at home?"_

"No, I'm at Hiccup's, he's juggling taking care of me and his mom. I'll let you know when I'm back home and you can come fuss over me then."

_"You make it sound as though I'm being overdramatic when you could have been killed!"_

"Mom, seriously, I need to go back to sleep. I'll call you, I promise."

She glanced at the time as she hung up, seeing it was almost midnight. It had been less than a day since she was released from the hospital, less than two full days since the initial kidnap. It felt like weeks, and she still ached all over and her head still twinged, but she felt _less_ nauseous and dizzy when she got up for the bathroom. Which was an improvement.

"How are you feeling?"

Hiccup asked, seeing her stumble out of the bathroom.

"Alive. Ish. My mother just called and reminded me I hadn't called her, and she found out about the whole kidnap thing on the news."

Hiccup frowned.

"Did you tell her you were here?"

Astrid nodded, but was quick to assuage Hiccup's obvious fear that her mother was about to turn up on his doorstep.

"Yeah, but I told her she could see me when I can go back home, that I'd call her, and also that I was going back to sleep."

"Are you?"

"No, but it was the only way to get rid of her. How's your mom? And how are you?"

Hiccup shrugged tightly.

"Mom's ok."

His lack of answer and the tension in his frame said plenty about his reticence for the upcoming conversation, but Astrid knew it needed having. But first, she really needed something in her system, and Hiccup seemed to be thinking along the same lines.

"Come on, you need to eat."

She went, watching him as she waited. Valka watched her watch Hiccup. She could probably tell there was some unusual tension in the air. Hiccup placed down green tea and honey mixed with peanut butter on toast for Astrid, which she ate in silence but definitely felt better for. Hiccup sipped his own tea quietly, lingering grogginess around his eyes from the heavy painkillers he'd taken earlier.

"Will you be alright on your own for a bit mom?"

"Of course, I might go and watch a film in bed, warm these old bones a bit."

Hiccup went to see her to bed, taking Valka a fresh warm drink before he came back to Astrid, who had finished her tea by then. He gestured for her to follow him, which she did, both sat on his bed before he broached it.

"Alright then. Talk."

He'd been the one to suggest they needed to talk to begin with, but the way he looked at her... Astrid got the feeling he _knew _something was up with her. Taking a deep breath, Astrid debated making a more thought out starter, but decided to simply be honest.

"You scared me."

He nodded, but didn't say anything for a minute.

"Good."

Astrid blinked, surprised.

_"Good?"_

"Yes. If that _hadn't _scared you, I'd be more concerned. But that's not all that's bothering you."

He wasn't good at socialising, even now, but the predator in Hiccup could sense some things, and fear was one.

"No, it's not. You... you've been getting more violent, and not just a little bit. I'm starting to worry that line between you and the Night Fury is going to keep getting thinner. What happens when you lose control completely?"

Hiccup thought for a minute, then his shoulders slumped.

"I don't know. I can't _stop,_ so I can only keep going. I guess I can try to cut back... I'm going to have to if I'm getting surgery on my hands. Unless... are you going to break up with me if I can't stop?"

Just for a minute, Astrid was in Hiccup's little murder room, his knife at her throat and his empty eyes above her.

"I... I don't know. Because I know that if you were pushed, you _are_ capable of hurting me" she had the scar to show for it, small as it was "and I've had to really trust you _not_ to this whole time. If you _really _lost control, would I get hurt again?"

If she really wanted to, Astrid could convince herself that she was safe. Could remember how Hiccup had been careful with her in between beating her kidnapper to the edge of death. Could remember how he took care of her, submitted to her, looked at her with love.

But he was a killer, and she was realising it was naive to automatically _assume _she was definitely safe.

"That was different. You were a threat then. Unless you've decided to turn me in, you're not a threat now. You're not the Night Fury's type."

Astrid sighed, leaning back in to the pillow behind her, thinking.

"No. I'll never turn you in. But I do need to think about whether or not I'm prepared to hang around forever waiting for the day you can't contain yourself anymore. You've only been doing... _this _for a few years, really. Are you going to keep getting worse for the next forty or fifty years?"

"I can hardly get therapy for serial murder. This isn't an episode of Torchwood."

Astrid felt her face scrunch in confusion, before she remembered the vague reference he was making about 'murder rehab'.

"No, I know. But... I'm not sure we can go on like this indefinitely."

It was hard to say these things to him, with the sight of his hand bruised and swollen serving as a reminder of everything he went through to save her. But she wouldn't have _needed _saving if she hadn't gotten involved with him to begin with.

Not that Astrid was blameless. Her getting Hiccup to write to her was what put the spotlight on her to begin with. But that didn't change what she'd seen, gone from words and photos after the fact to real, actual proof of everything Hiccup was capable of. She wasn't losing sleep over the guy who kidnapped her with the intent of raping and murdering her being dead, but the fact Hiccup was so _coldly_ capable of such violence, and that protecting her pushed him to more extremes had shaken her.

"Call your mother back."

While she was thinking, Hiccup had stood, started pacing back and forth.

"What?"

"Call your mother back. See if she can come take care of you."

"Why?"

"So I can take you home."

Astrid winced. Hiccup noticed.

"What's the matter? Don't you trust me? If I was going to leave you dead somewhere, I wouldn't bother asking you to have someone waiting for you now, would I?"

Yeah... he was mad. It didn't seem the time to point out she'd noticed he didn't call _his _home _her _home, like he had earlier. Like Valka had when he was moving to rescue her. He actually left the room while Astrid called her mother, trying to ignore the shaking in her hands as she went to her call history, hit _call_ and waited.

_"Astrid? What is it?"_

Why was she shaking? She could hear the sleepiness in her mothers tone, but words were alert and clear, as though she were panicking.

"I uh... can you come to my place?"

_"Of course, but what's wrong?"_

"Just... I'll talk to you when you get here."

_"I'm on my way."_

She heard a thud, and her mom swearing before she hung up - banging her knee or toe on the stupidly huge bedside table she refused to get rid of, no doubt. Astrid took off the t-shirt she had on. It was Hiccup's. She dressed and headed out to put on her shoes, still by the front door since she'd had no intentions of going anywhere for a while. Hiccup was already dressed, car keys in hand, waiting. He'd obviously overheard that her mother was coming, else he'd have asked first... wouldn't he?

He didn't _look _angry, but Astrid knew better than anyone how decieving his looks could be.

Hiccup opened and closed her door for her, and he waited for her seatbelt to be buckled before he turned the engine on, and he drove carefully so she wouldn't be jostled too much. But he never said a word, just pulled up outside her home and made Astrid realise she hadn't even remembered her keys when he handed them over to her. And he watched her inside, but she heard the car pulling away as soon as her door was closed. At least the press wasn't camped outside her home like they had been at the hospital.

Astrid slumped sideways against the wall and sighed deeply, knowing she only had about fifteen minutes before her mother was going to turn up. Less if the woman chose to break the speed limit, which she wouldn't put past her. Hanging her keys up on a hook - a habit she'd picked up from Hiccup - Astrid continued on to the living room, flipping on the light switch.

"Hello Astrid."

* * *

"Where's Astrid?"

His mother asked as Hiccup got back, quite possibly now the _only_ person left who wasn't frightened of his dark moods.

"At home. _Her _home."

"What happened?"

"I think she finally got some common sense and decided dating a murderer was a bad idea. Not sure yet. She said it scared her, seeing me 'in action'. Which is good."

His hands balled in to fists, the pain in his swollen hand not really registering. He wanted to go out, to break something, to break _someone, _but that would have been stupid when so much attention was on the Night Fury, now that he'd been caught on film. After checking his mother was alright to be by herself, Hiccup took the ice pack from the freezer and headed to his room, resting the ice pack on his hands and using his laptop one handed, figuring he could at least see what happened with the live stream and whether or not someone recorded it.

Although that wasn't really going to take his mine off of Astrid. His discarded t-shirt on the bed was the one she'd worn to sleep. He was having trouble reconciling the woman who'd told him they couldn't go on as they were with the one who had held him as he slept earlier, but if he dwelled too much on that he'd get angry for letting her convince him to trust her and fall for her, only to reach her limit out of the blue when there were new eyes on him, which came about ultimately ecause of a stunt _she'd _asked him to pull with those damned letters.m

Seemed his mother was right all along. It was never going to last.

-HTTYD-

**I'd like to apologise for realising too late that I forgot to write Astrid getting her phone back from the police, please just pretend that I did write it and I'll correct it some other time.**


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33? This fic only has 40 chapters! Egads, we're almost there.**

-HTTYD-

Sat in front of her was Grimborn, the new detective, perching calmly on her sofa like he was cordially invited in to begin with and made himself at home.

"What are you _doing _here?"

Her head still felt awful, and Astrid knew Hiccup had already left. Her mother would be en route, but to Astrid that sounded less like a safety net and more like a bad situation for said mother to be walking in to. Grimborn rose to his feet, not looking at all perturbed to have been caught basically breaking in to her place.

"I came by to check on your welfare, and the door was unlocked."

Hiccup must have forgotten to lock it in his frantic state before.

"That doesn't give you the right to just let yourself in and wait for me. Get out!"

He showed no signs of leaving, and Astrid swallowed heavily as he approached her. It wasn't a fair fight; if he knocked her head she'd probably pass out. Astrid tried to feel out where her phone was, a chill running down her back when she realised the lack of weight against her side, where it should have been resting in her pocket. Had she left it at Hiccup's in her haste to get away from Hiccup in a bad mood?

"I thought you would like to see something."

_He_ had a phone, and after tapping on the screen a few times, Grimborn turned the screen to her. Astrid's heart caught in her throat as she saw what she realised was the video. The video of Hiccup - the _Night Fury _\- coming to her rescue, in all it's bloody glory.

"Where did you get that?"

"It's been making the rounds on the darker edges of the internet. I take an interest."

"Isn't accessing the Dark Web illegal?"

Oh, her head hurt. Astrid wasn't quite up to a battle of wits. The curt rapping at the door snapped her attention from the phone screen, a mix of fear and relief coursing through her.

"Doors open mom!"

"Astrid?"

Grimborn took a single step back as the Hofferson mother entered Astrid's home, taking in the sight before her.

"Am I interrupting something?"

"Not at all. I merely came by to check on Miss Hofferson's welfare."

"And he was just leaving."

Astrid was relieved to see him turn away, letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding. As soon as Grimborn left, she locked the door behind him and sagged bonelessly into her mothers arms.

"What's going on love?"

She managed to haul her daughter over to the sofa, where the two sat as Astrid shivered, only just now feeling the extent of panic at how _easily_ Grimborn had invaded her life, her space when she was already in a vulnerable state, recovering from the kidnap and Hiccup... had they broken up?

"I... uh. Hiccup and I had a fight."

"While you're in this condition!?"

Astrid winced.

"Not so loud! I have a concussion" her mother had the grace to look sheepish, and apologised before Astrid continued "I think we just... both of us were stressed cus of what happened and it was just stupid bickering cus we were close together and couldn't calm down."

She was babbling, because she couldn't tell her mother the _truth, _and with Eret gone, there was nobody Astrid could talk to about everything happening because nobody else had a clue. Not that she'd ever had much of a _conversation_ with Eret when he wasn't interrogating her in the station.

"You look exhausted. Let's get you to bed. I'll sleep out here on the sofa. Blankets in the same place?"

Astrid nodded, and even though she'd not been awake long, she crawled in to bed anyway. Her heart leapt up to her throat when there was a knock at the door, but she heard her mom answer it before she could even get up.

"What are you doing here?"

"Astrid left her phone in my house. I'm returning it."

_Hiccup! _Before she could try and stand up and go to him, though she had no idea what to say or even if she actually _wanted _to see him, the door closed. Her mother entered the room and handed Astrid her phone, patted her head gently and told her to get some rest. Astrid knew a guilty sense of relief that Hiccup had just been and gone, no drama, no attempt to see her and no argument with her mother.

She slept anyway, though it was restless and fitful and Astrid woke a few hours later feeling more tired than when she went to sleep. Head still aching, she saw her phone flash up _low battery _in the darkened room. Plugging it in and seeing the early hour, she winced but her throat was too dry. Hiccup never forgot to put water on her bedside, out of habit from doing the same for his mother.

Padding out quietly, Astrid saw her mother fast asleep, filled a glass as quietly as she could and crept back to her room without disturbing her. As she sat on her bed, Astrid was hit with the realisation that much of her life had come to revolve around Hiccup and his secrets. While Astrid didn't go out of her way to spend time with her mom - the woman drove her _mad,_ especially about marriage and babies, neither of which Astrid cared much for - she had spent time keeping said mother and Hiccup apart, because Hiccup was so uncomfortable around her.

She didn't begrudge Hiccup the effort, per se; serial killing aside, it was incredible he was as stable as he was after his upbringing, and his distaste for people in general wasn't very surprising. And in a way, Hiccup not wanting to be around her mom was probably actually him protecting her. Hiccup had a big secret and a bad temper, after all...

Gods, what a mess.

After a brief trip to the bathroom to pee and scrub the stale taste of sleep from her mouth, Astrid laid on her bed, staring at the wall (she couldn't stare at the ceiling, since she still couldn't lay on the back of her head).

She turned over a few thoughts in her mind, like _should I tell Hiccup about Grimborn turning up? _and _did we actually break up or is it a break?_ in between flares of nausea she wasn't entirely sure were down to her concussion.

Whether or not they were actually broken up was probably a decision that rested largely with her. Hiccup had no prior relationship experience to go on, and he hadn't said they were done. Though it seemed pretty implicit based on his behaviour.

When five thirty in the morning rolled around, Astrid heard a car pulling up outside and had a slightly mad thought about the cafe, which now opened at six thirty to sell coffee to people on their way to work. What day was it? Glancing at the calendar, she nodded to herself, got up and peered out the window to see the sight of Heather letting herself in to the bakery, illuminated by a street light.

Scribbling a note for her mother, Astrid let herself out and padded down, giving Heather something of a fright before being invited in.

"I know you like our coffee, but this is a little overzealous, even for you."

"I... I have had a rough few days."

"Yeah. You were kidnapped, that can be pretty rough. Are you alright?"

Astrid shrugged, unsure exactly what she planned to get from the early hour visit.

"Got a concussion that's driving me mad. Especially since I'm meant to avoid high caffeine."

"We're out of decaf coffee, that's due in about half an hour, but there's decaf tea?"

Heather offered, and Astrid nodded gratefully. The other woman started setting up, putting things on to bake and making sure the various pots and tubs she needed were filled, before making them both drinks and perching opposite Astrid.

"So, what's up? The papers were pretty vague. Apparently you dodged them at the hospital."

Heather said, small grin on her face as Astrid let out a low chuckle.

"Yeah. It was just... I don't know how to rationalise owing my life to a serial killer."

"And you thought I could sympathise?"

Astrid shrugged.

"I guess? Honestly I wasn't even thinking that, I just wanted a friendlyy face to talk to."

Taking a long sip of her drink, Heather tapped her fingers on the side of her mug, then got up and walked away for a minute.

"Come through here."

Confused, Astrid went, finding herself in a back room, filled with random bits of equipment, most of it gathering dust.

"What's going on?"

"There's no cameras in here."

Astrid felt a little disconcerted, and more than a little nervous about why Heather was so keen to be unobserved.

"Why don't you want there to be any cameras?"

"Because I'm worried how you're going to react, and so I don't want it on video."

Gods, Astrid had too much going on for Heather to start getting weird and cryptic.

"You're scaring me."

Heather blinked, shaking her head.

"Not trying to. Uh. Ok. Might be a tough question" Astrid felt her heart quicken slightly at the look on Heather's face "is Hiccup the Night Fury?"

* * *

"So, did you carry on watching the camera after I got there?"

Hiccup asked his mom as he stirred his tea, having just got back from returning Astrid's phone. He only realised she'd left it - fallen down the side of the bed in her haste to get away, probably - when it started vibrating with a received text.

"Yes. It wasn't _pleasant_ viewing, but I had to make sure you were safe. Who knows what that person could have had waiting?"

He'd suspected as much.

"Did it make you afraid of me?"

Valka shook her head, reaching for a biscuit from the plate next to her.

"No. I've long known what you're capable of, and you've never given me cause."

She pushed the plate over to him when Hiccup sat down, a strangely normal moment for the two of them against the backdrop of everything else, the rest of his life somehow more messy, tangled up in knots because of Astrid.

"It does make me worry _for _you, sometimes."

"How so?"

"I worry you'll lose your temper with the wrong person, or be too angry to be careful."

Fair concerns, he supposed. Astrid had said the same of his temper, as though she thought his control seemed thinner than before.

"That was... an unusual occurrence though. I've never had to rescue Astrid, or anyone, from a 'fan' before. And the fire wasn't my idea."

"I know, and I know you could never have done anything but go to her rescue."

"But she should never have been in a situation that required it to begin with, which only happened because I got involved with her in the first place. Maybe you were right all along."

Hiccup watched his mother think, weighing it back and forth.

"Perhaps. I was certainly against the idea of inviting someone in to our lives when you first met her."

"You aren't now?"

"Part of me is still very much against it, but another part of me has enjoyed seeing you fall in love. And another part has been very wary of how reckless Astrid makes you."

"Wow, that's a lot of parts."

His mother snickered, shaking her head.

"I don't know _where _you get your sarcasm from."

"You, and you damn well know it."

She let out a small laugh, and Hiccup felt a little lighter knowing _she_ wasn't afraid of him. He couldn't imagine her being so dependent on him _and _scared of that. He flexed his hand on the table, grimacing at the state of his hand.

"I know the damage was already done, but I do wonder if I've exacerbated the problem by beating people to death. I can't really ask a medical professional."

"Are you still going through with the operation?"

"I think I have to, if I want to keep drawing without being in pain. Just hoping it doesn't turn out I've developed a tendency for keloids since I last had surgery and it ends up making things worse."

That was why he was going with his right hand first - if it got worse, he'd still have his dominant left hand to use.

"Although if Astrid ends up staying away for good, I'm gonna have to convince the hospital to let me go home alone. It's only a local, so they should so long as I don't drive myself."

His mother gave him a sad smile, and Hiccup understood how she saw through his 'practical' statement, and knew that if she didn't come back, it was going to hurt.

-HTTYD-

**Poor Hiccup!**


	34. Chapter 34

***The Final Countdown plays in the background* only a few chapters to go!**

-HTTYD-

Astrid seriously, _seriously _hoped she was having some kind of concussion-induced hallucination, and that Heather hadn't actually just asked her if her boyfriend was a famously violent serial murderer.

"What the _fuck,_ Heather?"

"Yeah, I didn't think you'd take the question well."

"Well, would you?"

Heather crossed her arms, frowning.

"You know what? I'm not hearing a no here."

"Because I was shocked! Why would you even ask that?"

"Lots of reasons. Like how you managed to become the pet favourite of a serial killer and not, you know, get killed. Or how as soon as you were in trouble, they came running, and they were _pissed_. Really, there's quite a lot of things. Remember, I was _this _close" Heather gestured "to said serial killer. And over time, I realised how he's the same height and build as Hiccup, and that they had the same accent... oh, and they were both left handed. It all added up, how you got so many details, and why you were _so_ interested in what I said to the cops about him."

_Fuck. Fuck. Fuck!_

Heather _knew, _and Astrid knew she knew. Her asking felt like a formality, and after the last few days, Astrid just didn't have it in her anymore.

"You... you can't tell _anyone._"

"I won't."

Astrid felt her knees almost give way, the weight lifted from her shoulders immense and the relief knocking the wind from her.

"Really?"

"He saved my life, and yours. I'm not going to sit... well, _stand _here and say I understand, or approve, or could imagine dating someone like that myself. Besides which, I'm rather happy being alive, and I get the feeling he may well kill to protect his secret."'

Heather was absolutely right. Astrid knew _that _better than anyone.

Before either could say more, there was the sound of knuckles against glass, and Heather's eyes opened wide before she relaxed.

"Oh! That'll be the morning delivery."

Astrid wasn't sure how anyone was alert enough to be _delivering_ coffee rather than drinking it at that hour, but supposed that early places had to get it somewhere to keep the cycle of caffeine addicts going. They left the back cupboard, and Heather headed to the door to take the delivery.

"You want to stay for a drink?"

"Nah. Got another drop off, and you have company. Later Heather!"

Obviously on friendly terms with the delivery driver, Heather waved him off and started sorting through the box he'd dropped off, Astrid hovering awkwardly.

"Ok, we now have decaf coffee again. Give me a few minutes and I'll bring you some. You want a snack too?"

Astrid shook her head, stomach still doing somersaults from Heather's blunt question and horrifyingly accurate deductions. Heather went on fussing with everything, disappearing behind the scenes to make sure there'd be a steady supply of sugary snacks for anyone who could _stomach _that at the crack of dawn with their caffeine hit before she returned to Astrid, steaming mug of decaffeinated coffee placed in front of her, with a paper bag she placed next to it.

"In case you need a sugar hit later."

"Oh. Thanks."

Heather smiled, patting Astrid's shoulder before she went back to making sure she was ready to open up, giving tables a last wipe down and counting out the to-go cups she had to hand.

"Do people not bring in those eco-friendly ones these days?"

"No. Well, some do, but a lot of people consider it 'too much hassle'. I think the boss is working on us having our own made, so maybe we can make a sign that guilts them in to re-useable."

Astrid couldn't help but let out a small giggle at Heather's words, blowing steam away from her coffee and taking a sip.

"Save the planet, you bastards?"

She offered helpfully, and the waitress cackled.

"Exactly! If I put it in a nice enough font, I'll probably get away with it."

Heather grinned, taking a bite from her breakfast bar. They sipped and slurped in silence for a couple of minutes before Heather glanced at the clock and sighed.

"I have to open up in a minute. You're welcome to hang around, but I don't know if you feel like dealing with coffee-deprived morning commuters."

Astrid groaned, shaking her head.

"Not particularly. But thanks. I... I needed this. Although you took a bit of a risk."

"How do you mean?"

"Taking me out back to ask me that. I could have killed you for all you know."

Heather snorted.

"Normally, I wouldn't be able to, but in this state I reckon I could take you in a fight. Plus, you'd be on camera going in and coming out."

Astrid conceded her point, drinking more coffee.

"I better get back before my mom wakes up and has a fit. I did leave a note, but she worries."

Heather nodded, taking the empty cup Astrid held out to her.

"I finish at two. Want me to come by?"

"Are you sure?"

"You live round the corner and I've been up since four. I'd be _thrilled._"

Astrid nodded.

"Ok. I might be sleeping but I'll tell my mom you're invited."

Heather hugged her gently, both heading to the door so Heather could unlock the door and let her out. Astrid headed home, seeing her mother was half-dressed and, judging by her response, about to come looking for Astrid.

"Where were you!?"

Wincing at the volume of her mother, Astrid kicked off her shoes and answered quietly.

"I left a note. I was at the cafe talking to Heather because I couldn't get back to sleep, and I heard her turning up for the early shift. Oh. Which reminds me. She's coming over about two, if I'm sleeping."

As her mother was no longer sleeping on it, Astrid slumped on the sofa, shuffling around with pillows and a still-warm blanket until she was in a semi-comfortable position. Did she tell Hiccup that Heather knew? Perhaps he deserved to know, but Astrid wasn't sure how safe Heather would be with that knowledge.

On the other hand, the prospect of having someone she could _talk to, _openly and without fear... it was more than Astrid had expected to ever get, and she wasn't yet prepared to risk giving it up. Nor was she really in any place to talk to Hiccup yet anyway.

The pastry Heather gave her was consumed and appreciated immensely by Astrid, who then went back to bed under her mothers insistence. Astrid went agreeably, if only to be able to lie down more comfortably. She dozed on and off for a bit before all her drinks caught up with her, leaving her room to find her mother fussing and cleaning.

"What is this?"

She was holding up a sketchbook, and Astrid took a minute to recognise it. It was one of HIccup's, and she knew what was in it.

"I wouldn't open that if I were you."

"Why?"

"Pretty sure it's the one Hiccup used to draw me naked in."

Mrs Hofferson turned a rather interesting colour, shaking her head.

"I'm not even going to ask."

Astrid shrugged.

"He's an artist who's seen me naked."

The sketchbook also contained several drawings of murders from Astrid's books, which she didn't really want to explain how Hiccup knew what that sort of thing looked like. Thankfully, the prospect of seeing explicit images of her own daughter was enough of a deterrent, and Astrid took the sketchbook from her mother and put it in her room before resuming her journey to the bathroom. With an empty bladder and freshly brushed teeth, Astrid ventured back out in search of sustenance.

"What do you want to eat love?"

Soft fingers brushed her hair off her face, voice finally adjusted to concussion-friendly volume.

"Uh. I think there's stuff in the freezer to re-heat."

Hiccup was used to batch cooking so his mother had meal options she could fix up herself, and so when he'd cooked at Astrid's place, he'd done the same thing. She heard her mom root through the freezer, pulling out a couple of different tubs of pre-made meals.

Astrid had barely finished eating when there was a knock at the door, heart leaping up into her throat before she realised what time it was. Sure enough, Heather was at her door - bearing pastry and decaf coffee for Astrid, and cakes, cookies and caffeine for herself (they were slightly burned and would have been tossed otherwise, she commented when Astrid laughed at the amount).

"Hey. How are you feeling?"

"Like I was hit with a bus. But a slightly smaller bus than earlier."

Heather laughed, patting her arm before turning to look at Mrs Hofferson.

"If you want to take a break or run some errands, I'm fine to take care of Astrid for a couple of hours."

"Are you sure?"

Heather nodded, and so Mrs Hofferson left to fetch supplies, both from her home and the supermarket. Waiting to be sure they were definitely alone, Heather made herself comfortable on one end of the sofa, taking a large bite of her cookie as she watched Astrid try to get comfortable, wrapping a blanket around herself and hugging her coffee.

"Now nobody is listening, you wanna talk about... everything?"

Part of her wanted to say no, too used to holding all the secrets tight to her chest. But Astrid nodded all the same.

"Sure. It's a long story though."

"So... should we start at the beginning?"

* * *

"Are you sure you're gonna be ok?"

Valka rolled her eyes at him.

"Hiccup, I'll be _fine. _You're going to be gone a few hours, not a week. I'm not going with you to wait in a hospital hallway on uncomfortable chairs."

Reluctantly conceding her point, Hiccup sighed and shouldered his bag. Even if he had to get kept in overnight, his mother wouldn't _struggle _much. She was capable of getting her own medication and drinks if she had to. Hiccup had refilled her pill planner, there was plenty of food. Hel, there was every chance she'd spend most of the time he was gone in bed, resting.

She kissed his forehead, squeezed the hand not being operated on.

"Try not to antagonise the doctors."

"No promises. I better get going. You have the ward number for emergencies?"

"I do. Now _go, _I'm going to be fine."

Sighing again, Hiccup headed off to the bus stop - he couldn't drive himself home, so it would have been ridiculous to drive himself there, and a taxi wouldn't have saved much time but would have cost more. He had a bus pass, after all.

The reception staff at the hospital greeted him warmly, glancing as though expecting him to have company.

"No Valka today?"

"Nope. It's my operation day."

The young brunette lady tapped away on her computer, making a sound of comprehension.

"Ah yes, here it is. You know the way?"

"I do. See you later."

The surgeon operating on him was waiting, chatting with the doctor Hiccup had seen a few times for the increasing difficulty in dexterity, both looking at his scans when he got there.

"Morning Hiccup."

"Morning."

His pre-op was pretty short, and Hiccup was allowed to change in private, and keep his trousers on under the hideous sterile gown. Exposing his scars made Hiccup very uncomfortable, but most of the staff were known to him and didn't say anything. As soon as he was in the chair that helped hide his scarred back, Hiccup relaxed a _bit._

With his hand numbed and a little sheet protecting his eyes from the terrible sight - Hiccup had to fight a laugh when they set that up, because he'd seen, and caused, a _lot _worse - they got to work, making lots of tiny incisions to work on releasing the tight scar tissue that restricted his movement and caused him pain and problems. He knew the bones in his hands were also thicker and stronger, from breaking and healing multiple times. Hiccup wondered if that helped him punch people harder.

"You feeling anything?"

"My butt has gone to sleep?"

His surgeon laughed, continuing her finicky work.

"You had better keep up with your physio after this."

"I plan to. I'm only doing this so I can keep drawing, wouldn't go through this and not bother taking care of the results."

It seemed to take a long time, but when Hiccup looked up at the clock, it hadn't been as long as he thought. Bandaged up and wearing an unattractive cast - specially picked so if need be, Valka could grab the wrist area to compensate for Hiccup only having one hand - Hiccup cradled his hand against his chest, listening as best he could to the post operative care instructions.

"Still going home by yourself?"

His nurse asked, pointedly looking away when Hiccup started getting re-dressed.

"Got no choice. My... my girlfriend _was _going to accompany me, but..."

"Break up?"

Hiccup shrugged. He wasn't really sure. They hadn't spoken ever since Astrid admitted he scared her. Did that mean a break up? He didn't know about relationships.

"Besides, I'm only gonna be getting in a taxi from here to home. I doubt that will go particularly differently on my own."

"I know, which is the only reason you're being allowed to leave. I know you already have painkillers at home, but I'm duty bound to make sure you leave with a prescription for painkillers. You know what to look for for signs on infection, and you have my number to call directly if you have any issues. Try to use the arm as little as possible for a week, though I appreciate that isn't easy for you."

He took the prescription, heading up to the hospital pharmacy while he was there.

"Hey Hiccup."

"Hi Freddie."

He knew the pharmacy technician by _name, _that was how regularly they were in and out of that particular building. Leaving with a pharmacy bag tucked into his hoodie pocket, Hiccup bade farewell where necessary before he turned toward the automatic doors leading outside. As he reached the exit, someone rushing in all but bumped into him. Hiccup scowled, ready to complain at the idiot who'd almost walked right into his freshly-operated-on hand.

Then he recognised them.

"Astrid?"

-HTTYD-

**Well... I wonder how all this is gonna go. Also, it's light outside at 5am and I hate it.  
**


	35. Chapter 35

**After, what? Almost six weeks, I think? Here's a chapter!  
**

-HTTYD-

She stumbled back a step, looking up at him properly.

"Hi."

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh, well, nice to see you too."

"I just got surgery and you almost headbutted my hand, and we haven't spoken to each other in a fortnight."

Astrid wondered if his ire was reasonable - it was true, she _hadn't _been in touch with him in all that time. And, given his _usual _behaviour when he was angry, Astrid supposed a sharp tone and not jumping for joy at the sight of her was pretty minor. Their last conversation was one of Astrid saying she didn't know how prepared she was to commit her life, and her heart, to someone like him. No wonder Hiccup was smarting.

Still, it _stung _that he wasn't happy to see her.

"I... I was meant to take you home."

"I've already been discharged without you."

Of course he had. Hiccup had no indication whatsoever that Astrid was going to turn up. And then she'd been running late because her mother was _impossible, _and after _that _she was dodging some reporter who _followed_ her from near her house, having apparently tracked her down to the cafe she frequented. Hence the speedy entrance into the hospital, which led to the almost hitting Hiccup's cast with her head.

Speaking of...

"Miss Hofferson!"

_Shit._

Hiccup looked absolutely bewildered as Astrid ducked out of sight, then seemed to spot the man chasing Astrid.

"Who is that?"

"Some reporter who wants to talk about me being kidnapped."

Recovering, Astrid hadn't really left her house much - Heather visited her most days, and her mom was no longer spending the night but was there a few hours each day, fussing over her. Astrid was essentially back to normal, though she still had a little trouble with blurred vision if she focused too hard, which meant she couldn't go back to work.

But that meant that she'd not spoken to any reporters about what had happened - not that she really wanted to anyway - and so there was still a push to be the first to speak to the Night Fury's favourite, who'd been taken in the night and escaped only because of her violent guardian angel.

Hiccup raised one eyebrow, looked back at the reporter who was debating whether or not to get himself in trouble for entering the hospital and took a few steps forward.

"Go away."

"I need to speak to her!"

"No you don't."

Astrid dared peer around from her hiding spot, and whatever the reporter saw in Hiccup's face obviously scared him enough to back up, though he was still looking for her all the while. A taxi wheeled itself up, and Hiccup gestured to Astrid to follow him.

"Come on."

Grateful for the escape, Astrid followed him. Opened the door for him, and after watching his awkward fumble, quietly offered to help put his seatbelt on. Hiccup nodded stiffly, visibly uncomfortable the entire time. That hurt to see; it had been a long time since Hiccup recoiled from her touch. Astrid could have tried to tell herself it was because he was feeling vulnerable needing help in front of the taxi driver, but she'd have been lying to herself.

"Ready to go?"

"Yeah, thanks."

The sound of a paper pharmacy bag crinkling in his pocket was the loudest sound in the car the entire ride back. Astrid half expected Hiccup to get out and tell the driver to take her home, but he didn't say a word other than "thanks" to the driver as he paid and got out. Astrid hovered, uncertain, before scrambling out after him. He unlocked the front door and waited for her to come in after him, so Astrid supposed that was as close to an invitation as she was going to get.

"Mom? I'm home!"

He called out, toeing off his shoes at the door and stepping in to slippers that were waiting nearby. Astrid thought it presumptive of herself, but didn't want to track dirt through the house so she slipped her shoes off and followed awkwardly in her socks.

"Did it go well son?"

Valka's voice came back from the direction of the kitchen, so Hiccup headed that way.

"Yeah."

Her gaze found Astrid, and the woman was visibly perplexed by the blondes presence.

"I thought..."

"Oh. Yeah. It was bring her with me or mess up my good hand punching that guy following her. Suppose I could have used the casted side, but I think my surgeon would have killed me. Everything alright while I was gone?"

"Fine, and I'm glad you're back."

Valka yawned right after saying that, and Hiccup turned to Astrid.

"Wait here. Come on, let's get you to bed. Don't fuss, I'm fine."

That was aimed at his mother, and though Valka seemed initially hesitant, she let Hiccup make sure she was settled for her sleep. Astrid shuffled, tense as she waited. Hiccup returned a few minutes later, his cast-clad hand cradled to his chest.

"Why are you here?"

"I need to talk to you."

"Think you said everything already. You're not pregnant are you?"

Astrid blanched.

"What? No!"

"Just checking. It's the sort of thing people mean on TV when they say they need to talk. Is this important? I'm supposed to be resting."

Astrid bit back a spiky retort - she _had _gone silent on him for two weeks, then just turned up out of the blue.

"Alright. I think Grimborn is stalking me. And I think he knows you're the Night Fury. Important enough for you?"

Ok, maybe she could have been _less _prickly when she answered. Hiccup paled, shaking his head.

"You... what? Wait, I need to be sitting down for this."

He filled a glass with water, presumably for his post-operative medication, then gestured for Astrid to follow him to the living room. Lowering himself into a seat slowly, Hiccup sighed.

"Alright. What about Grimborn?"

"Ok. Well, that night you dropped me home, he was in my living room" Hiccup's eyes widened "which was creepy in itself. And he had the video of you. He said he thought I'd want to see it. But my mom arrived before long, and he left without a fuss."

Hiccup frowned.

"How did he get in? I locked your door."

"You did? Are you sure?"

Hiccup nodded, fiddling with the box of painkillers he'd taken out of the bag.

"Definitely. It took me three tries, my hands were shaking."

As he remembered every detail of every murder he'd ever committed, clearly enough to paint them after the fact, Astrid believed him. Which made Viggo Grimborn being in her home all the more terrifying.

"Then I don't know how he got in. I had my keys. You still have your copy, right?"

"Yeah. But he could have picked the lock. Might be worth investing in a better one."

"Heather already made me get a new lock fitted. Your key doesn't work anymore."

Hiccup shrugged.

"I'll take it off my keys when I can use both hands again. Is this all that's happened?"

"No. I haven't been out other than for my concussion follow up, and to see Heather at the cafe. But I saw him on my way to the appointment, and I swear I saw him outside the cafe more than once. But he was gone when I looked again. I might be losing my mind, who knows?"

"Why do you think he knows who I am? Has he spoken to you?"

Astrid shook her head.

"No. But there was something about the way he said he thought I wanted to see the video... I don't know. I might be overly worried. But I do think he's following me."

Hiccup rubbed his face.

"Right. Well, you could report him."

"I could, but he's just going to deny it."

Astrid chewed her lip as Hiccup started fumbling to pop out a pain relieving tablet from the blister pack, and she noticed just how _tired _he looked. She hadn't told him everything... but he had a right to know.

"I need to tell you something else."

She didn't _mean _to say that just after he swallowed his tablet, it was just the end result of her spending several long seconds debating.

"Oh?"

"Heather knows."

Hiccup choked on his water.

"What do you mean, _Heather knows?"_

"I didn't tell her! She told me she already knew!"

That was stretching the truth a _little, _but Heather had already become quite convinced before she brought it up with Astrid.

"And you didn't deny it?"

"I tried! But this was like, the morning after you _politely_ threw me out, when I was still concussed. Hard to be a convincing liar with head trauma."

Hiccup scowled.

"So you just... told her?"

"Yes. And she said she wasn't going to say a word, because you saved her life."

"That's not the point! You were here talking about not being able to trust me not to hurt you, and then went right out and broke _my _trust in you not outing me."

She could tell by the twitch of his hand and the harsh set of his features that Hiccup was a lot angrier than he was letting on.

"Yes, I did. And you have _no _idea what a damn relief it was."

"Oh yeah, real relief for _you _I'm sure."

"It was! I've gone through all of this at your side, and I've never said a damned word to anyone. And that's the problem. I _can't _talk to anybody. I can't talk to your mom about you. And the one time I tried to talk to _you _about all this, openly and honestly, you shut down and kicked me out."

Hiccup rolled his eyes.

"You said you were scared of me, so I drove you home after making sure you'd be taken care of. How is _that _kicking you out?"

"You didn't want me here, and we both know it."

"You're right. I didn't. I still don't" Hiccup picked up his phone, adept at managing it one handed from years of dexterity problems already "so you can leave. And just to be sure you make it home safely, I've ordered you a taxi."

"And that's it?"

He shook his head, but even standing clearly cost him some energy as he got up.

"No. I'm not done with this, but I'm exhausted and just took morphine, and honestly I don't trust you enough to sleep with you in the house, _especially _not with my mother here. Now get out."

The icy tone of those last three words scared Astrid more than any shouting and screaming could have done. Hiccup waited as she put her shoes back on, unlocked the door to let her out and she heard it lock again as soon it shut behind her.

She looked around, half-expecting to see Grimborn hovering nearby again. Hiccup didn't exactly live on a busy street. The taxi he'd called did indeed roll up soon after, and Astrid was informed he'd paid in advance for it. Like always, it was jarring to reconcile someone so _terrifying_ with someone who could be so... tender, caring.

The mounting anxiety and stress she felt manifested in a gods-awful headache, and as Astrid still wasn't back to a hundred percent post-concussion she didn't try to fight the urge to curl up in bed. She _did _try to fight the urge to cry, because she knew it would aggravate her headache. That was a losing battle, and her mother came back in time to find Astrid a sobbing wreck on her bed.

"I told you not to go."

"Mom, now is _not _the time, alright?"

Tsking, her mother soothed a hand over Astrid's flushed, clammy face before pulling her into a hug. Astrid cried herself out for a little longer, let her mom push water and painkillers on her for her headache. A little dizzy when she stood, Astrid ambled to the kitchen for food, then texted Heather to let her know Hiccup knew she knew. It wasn't an easy message to send, because in her moment of honesty to Hiccup, she'd ended up putting Heather in danger.

If she'd been asked a month ago, Astrid would have laughed at the idea she had to _warn_ her friend to be careful of Hiccup.#

But a lot had changed since then.

-HTTYD-

***flings chapter into the void and hides under a rock***


	36. Chapter 36

**I didn't get much done this past month or so... but nothing to be done about that now! On we go.**

-HTTYD-

Heather handed her a drink before sitting next to her on the sofa, both watching the TV. It wasn't a brand new news alert, but the twenty four hour channels showed the same news on a loop. And so Astrid had seen the same scene of Grimborn disappearing behind the _Do Not Cross _tape, with the words _**NIGHT FURY CLAIMS ANOTHER VICTIM **_flashing across the bottom of the screen a half dozen times already.

When Hiccup mentioned that he considered dropping a new victim in while recovering from his surgery, Astrid hadn't taken him _that _seriously. Still, the victim wasn't her, her mother or Heather.

"I know there's obviously more to him than meets the eye, but still. He's recovering from surgery and only has one useable hand!"

Heather commented as they listened to the repeat of information.

"Yeah. He said he can use a few of his weapons one handed. And it's his right hand he had operated on, he still has his dominant hand."

Astrid stood by what she'd said to Hiccup - having someone to talk to about everything was _such_ a relief. And while Heather was obviously not whole-heartedly supportive of Astrid's decision to knowingly date a serial killer - even if she'd not known at the start - Heather was adamant she wasn't going to be the one to turn Hiccup in. She obviously had complicated feelings, given that Hiccup had saved her life.

She was having complicated feelings of her own. Despite everything, Astrid _missed _him. So, so much. Serial murder and bad temper aside, Hiccup had been the best relationship of her life. He was sweet and caring, sarcastic and funny. He listened to her. Indulged Astrid going on about her writing for hours on end. Despite the problems with his hands, he'd drawn scenes for her. Typed out the letters she asked for. He'd let her in to his life when the walls he had up had been insurmountable to anyone else, and let her in to his home despite how protective he was of his ailing mother.

Astrid missed Valka too. She wasn't always totally coherent, what with the powerful medication she took, and was asleep quite a lot of the time. But she had the same sarcastic humour as Hiccup, and she did genuinely seem happy that her son had found someone.

"Ughhhhhhh."

She sighed, scrubbing a hand over her face.

"What's wrong?"

Heather asked, concerned.

"I just... I miss Hiccup."

There was no point lying - Heather knew pretty much every detail of her life and relationship by then. Her friend gave Astrid a sad, pitying smile.

"Not surprised. But you know, this might not be the worst thing. You said yourself that he's been getting worse."

"I know. And I know he's dangerous, and I _know_ it's not my job to try and fix him. I don't even think he _can _be fixed anyway, there is something very broken inside Hiccup. And I know that being with him is risky and not something any sane, rational person would even consider. But part of me really, really doesn't care."

Her heart and her self-preservation were at war every time she thought of Hiccup. It was kind of exhausting, if she was honest.

"At least wait until you're officially cleared from your concussion before you go making decisions about getting back together with your murderous boyfriend."

Astrid rolled her eyes. She was due what was _hopefully_ her final check up the following week, where she ought to be cleared to go back to work. Staying home with her mother fussing all the time was making her stir crazy, and she missed the gym. Though, she noted to herself, she'd probably not be going at night for a while...

"Has he been in touch?"

"No, but he said he wasn't done with me last week, so I expect he will. He knows you know, I doubt Hiccup can leave that alone no matter how mad he is at me."

Heather frowned.

"That's not really a comforting thought."

"I know. And I'm sorry you got dragged in to this."

"Eh. I dragged myself in a little bit by asking you in the first place. I could have just kept my suspicions to myself."

Astrid shrugged.

"You know you can opt out at any time. I mean, not by telling the cops, but you don't have to hang around."

Heather seemed to consider it, but shook her head.

"Nah, I'm invested now. Besides, I don't think the cafe would stay afloat if you stopped coming in."

Astrid stuck her tongue out, but soon dissolved into giggles alongside Heather.

"Nice to know you keep me around for my love of pastry."

"Just like you keep me around because I bring you coffee all the time?"

"Exactly."

They both snickered, falling into comfortable silence as the news looped away on TV. Heather made them food a little while later, before she checked the time and said she needed to get going.

"I'll walk you down, I need to get milk."

"You sure?"

Astrid nodded, heading to get her shoes. And pepper spray. Heather's brother had gotten it for her, and since they weren't really legal in the UK, Astrid had opted not to ask where or how when Heather presented it to her. She hoped not to use it - Grimborn was unlikely to turn down the chance to arrest her if she used it on him, after all, but she felt a bit safer with it on her.

They headed down, Heather walking with her to the corner where her car was parked. The newsagents Astrid wanted to pop to was only a few steps further away. Heather looked like she was considering lingering, but Astrid encouraged her to leave.

"You're not gonna be able to babysit me my whole life. It's like, five minutes tops."

Heather sighed.

"Fine. Text me to say you got home or I won't sleep."

"I will, now go home!"

Heather stuck her tongue out, but she did start getting in to her car. Astrid continued on to the shop, picking up a carton of milk and some chocolate. The milk was for her (still _decaf_, she grumbled to herself) coffee, and the chocolate... well, that was because it had been weeks since she'd gotten any, and she was recovered enough to be very aware it was the longest she'd gone without sex since she and Hiccup first started, whether or not that was a sensible thing to be concerned about.

Astrid took a few deep breaths before she stepped outside, skin prickling as she started walking home. She turned the corner by the cafe Heather worked at, and _knew_ she was being watched. Her fingers curled around the canister in her pocket, refusing to walk faster, refusing to look up. She couldn't help but look behind her before she turned off toward the steps up to her home, or walking quicker to her front door. The satisfying sound of her heavy duty lock clicking in to place soothed her a little, racing heart starting to calm down.

She texted Heather to reassure her friend she'd gotten back fine, put the milk away and considered making a coffee to go curl up in bed with. Her heart leapt up into her throat when there was a knock at the door, and Astrid approached it very warily, doing her best to be silent as she peered through the peephole.

It was Grimborn.

* * *

Hiccup thanked his taxi driver, who helpfully opened the door for Hiccup when he saw the cast on his wrist, and climbed rather gracelessly out of the car. He was feeling the late night and lack of morphine, muscles achey and both his hands sore.

Still, his cast was off the next day if he was lucky, though he'd probably have to use it on and off between physio, as it was also to help his fingers heal properly. He was mostly looking forward to getting his stitches out, as they were irritating him something fierce.

Hiccup didn't even know if Astrid was going to be home, wondering if he should have asked the taxi to wait as he climbed the stairs up to where she lived with a groan or two - his legs were _sore. _As he reached the top, he felt anger flare at what he saw. Pain forgotten for the moment, he headed over.

"... talk to us down at the station."

Astrid definitely did _not _look like she wanted to go anywhere with Grimborn. He wasn't alone, which was probably a leftover from the cops backtracking when Astrid's kidnap cleared her of suspicion of being the Night Fury.

Because he _knew _Viggo Grimborn did not think Astrid was the Night Fury. No no, he'd made it quite clear he thought it was Hiccup.

"Why should I?"

The fact he had company was probably the only reason Grimborn wasn't trying to break in to Astrid's place. Again.

"Everything alright Astrid?"

His... girlfriend? Ex? Hiccup wasn't sure... Astrid looked _very_ surprised to see him. Grimborn didn't look too impressed either.

"Fine."

"We were just asking Miss Hofferson to come speak with us."

Hiccup frowned, making sure to hold his cast-clad hand up to his chest where they could see it.

"Is she under arrest?"

"No."

Hiccup looked over at Astrid.

"Do you want to go with them?"

She shook her head, so Hiccup turned back to the police.

"Then you can go."

Grimborn scowled, though it was smoothed away before long. Hiccup stood his ground, daring Grimborn to challenge him on it.

"Very well. I wish you a speedy recovery Miss Hofferson."

"Thanks."

Hiccup watched Grimborn leave, then turned back to Astrid.

"I did come here to talk to you, but now I need to get home because I don't trust him."

Astrid looked torn between slamming the door on him and actually speaking to him, hesitating for a very long minute.

"Hang on, I'll come with you. Well, if that's alright?"

He nodded, taking a step back to show he was staying outside while Astrid went back inside. He ordered a taxi to take them back, sort of relieved - if he was going home, he could take some pain relief, as well as be sure Grimborn wasn't trying anything. Astrid reappeared a couple of minutes later, wearing shoes and jacket she kept her hands in the pockets of. The taxi ride was just as stilted and awkward as the one back from the hospital had been, but that was hardly surprising.

"Mom? You here?"

Hiccup called out as he opened the door, relieved to hear her call back to him.

"I didn't expect you back so- ah."

She stopped short in the doorway, spotting Astrid was with him.

"When I got there, Grimborn was there. I didn't like the idea of him knowing you were home alone."

"Well, I'm totally fine, as you can see. How are you feeling?"

Hiccup shrugged, aware of the awkwardness as Astrid hovered nearby.

"Alright. You need anything?"

Valka shook her head.

"Just watching a film, don't worry about me."

She turned and shuffled back to the living room. Hiccup debated internally, then turned to Astrid.

"Go wait in my room, I need to get my meds out the kitchen."

Astrid nodded silently and went that way, while Hiccup retrieved his not-too-potent painkillers, hoping to at least take the edge off without doping himself up on morphine again. Tablets swallowed, Hiccup headed off to what promised to be an uncomfortable conversation.

She was stood next to the bed, peering at the sketch Hiccup had started that morning.

"Have you slept at all since last night?"

He shrugged.

"A couple of hours. Does it matter?"

"You look tired. We don't have to do this now."

"I probably wouldn't be sleeping even if you weren't here."

Hiccup circled his bed and climbed up on it, groaning in relief as he took weight off his leg. Astrid didn't immediately sit down, and was still wearing her jacket.

"Are you gonna stand there the whole time? Or are you still afraid of me?"

After a minute, she undid her jacket and sat down gingerly on the bed, moving his sketchpad very carefully so she wouldn't sit on it.

"Ok, I realise this isn't why you asked me here, but what's with you and Grimborn?"

"He came to see me yesterday. Made it pretty clear that he does think he's clocked me as the Night Fury. I told him he was nuts, and that if he came within twenty feet of my mother ever again I'd rip his throat out."

Astrid blinked.

"So in the same breath as denying you're a serial killer, you threatened to murder him?"

"Well, I know from you that he's a creep. I was just making my stance clear right away. Is he still following you?"

"I think so. Heather's brother got me this" she slipped a cannister out of her pocket "pepper spray. Which is sort of illegal. So I didn't ask where he got it."

Hiccup wasn't keen to find out just how painful pepper spray was, so kept his hands - well, hand - to himself despite wanting to look at it. Shuffling himself into a more comfortable seated position, Hiccup looked at Astrid, trying to figure out what to say.

"Ok, I have another question."

She started, and Hiccup nodded to say she should ask it.

"Alright. What is it?"

"Why did it take you like, a week? Before, you seemed set on 'dealing' with this sooner."

"Mom. She told me I had to wait and think things through. In her own way, I think she was aiming to protect you, so I wouldn't come to you in anger."

That seemed to surprise her, but it was completely true. Hiccup wasn't certain he would have actually _hurt _Astrid... though the blonde was right. He _had. _He'd proved he was capable of it. The little scar on her neck was almost invisible by then, but Hiccup knew it was there.

"Huh. You'll have to thank her for me."

They lapsed into silence, tense and awkward before Astrid broke it again.

"So, where do we go from here?"

"I don't know. I..." Hiccup was still not very skilled at conversation, but he had been rolling these words over in his mind for days now "is the reason you haven't dumped me because you feel like my... feelings for you are what's keeping you and Heather safe?"

Astrid thought about it quietly for a good minute or two, before shaking her head.

"No. I still love you. I still _miss_ you. I just... I'm just not sure how much difference that makes. Everything I said before is still true. You're still dangerous, and being with you is a risk I'm not sure I can take forever. But I know who and what you are, and I'm not naive enough to expect you to stop."

Well, that was honest of her. Hiccup wasn't entirely sure what to do with her answer, if he was honest.

"Well, I'm not really sure there's anything I can say. I mean, you've betrayed my trust in you, which wasn't easy for me to give you in the first place."

Astrid looked away, expression pensive.

"I know. But Heather isn't going to say anything. Even if she wouldn't feel guilty cus you saved her, she's not going to turn _me _in, because if you went down at this point, I would too. And while I realise your faith in my words is damaged, I wouldn't do that to you either, no matter what."

He only had two choices, Hiccup knew. Trust Astrid _and _Heather to keep his secret? Or... _make certain_ they couldn't say anything. If he was honest, neither was a particularly appealing prospect.

"I'm still not sure if this is something that can go on, but I also acknowledge it's not fair of me to ask you to just hang around while I decide. So if you want to call this quits now, I'll go with that."

Astrid presented him with the choice, and Hiccup wasn't all that sure what _he _wanted.

"Is there much point in me waiting anyway? So far, you've not really given me any idea you really want this to work out."

"It's not that I don't want this to work out. I just..." Astrid let out a long, deep sigh "I just don't want to die."

-HTTYD-

**Well, I don't think that's unreasonable of her.**


	37. Chapter 37

**37, 38, 39, 40... wow, we're so close to the end!**

-HTTYD-

_"I just don't want to die."_

Astrid's words played over in his mind as he laid back in the hospital chair, his hand being poked and prodded as healing was checked. He couldn't really argue with it, and she'd left not long after to give them both space to think. And she'd reassured him she'd made it home safely with Grimborn out there.

Grimborn was the reason his mother was there with him today, when Hiccup so rarely brought her out to his appointments, but she insisted she was up to it and wanted to get a little air. Hiccup let her convince him, since he was so reluctant to leave her behind.

"Well, you're healing as well as I expected. No signs of any infection or keloids forming. You can stop wearing your brace full time, but I'd recommend you sleep in it and exercise your hand when you wake up. And you can of course wear it if you feel your hand needs a little extra protection. I'll see you back in a week to check your scar healing and range of movement. So be sure to follow up with your physiotherapist, and stick to your exercises. Do you need a new painkiller prescription?"

She knew Hiccup took painkillers anyway, but not as often as he really needed them, so it was a fair question. He shook his head.

"No thanks, I still have half a pack and the pain isn't any worse than it was before the op, and at least this should be worth something. When can I drive again?"

"As soon as you're comfortable gripping the wheel with your right hand alone, really. I'd advise a test drive before you go out anywhere though."

Hiccup nodded, flexing his fingers very gingerly. Just to see that he could.

"Thanks doc. Ready to go mom?"

He offered her his arm to help her stand, which she thanked him softly for. They headed out of the hospital, Hiccup feeling weird remembering Astrid quite literally running into him the last time he was there.

"You sure you're up to the trip?"

"Yes, yes. I hardly ever get out past the back garden! I'll go to bed when we get home if it makes you stop fretting."

Hiccup couldn't help but chuckle at her, kissing his mother's temple.

"Alright. Exciting shopping trip it is, but if you need a break let me know."

His mother was pretty slow on her feet, but insisted she wanted to walk. Hiccup wouldn't deny her what little independence she had, and patiently kept pace as they walked around the supermarket. If they made a strange picture, shuffling around slowly in their baggy jumpers and keeping their distance from everyone else where possible, Hiccup didn't care. It took about four times as long to do it as it would if he'd gone alone, but Valka did seem genuinely happy to have gotten out and about, even for something as mundane as their food shopping. And she got to pick out some new jelly sweets to try out, which made her quite excited as Hiccup smiled on fondly.

Hiccup sometimes wondered who and what he'd be like if he didn't still have his mother. Probably locked up, since his main motivation for how rigorously he protected his identity and ensured never to leave a trace behind was so he could get home to take care of her. And she also kept him a little more grounded. Without her, Hiccup wouldn't have had any reason to resist his dark side at all. Not that he did a _great _job of that now, but he tried. For her sake.

He tried for Astrid too. Tried to keep his temper in check, tried to be good to her, tried to figure out how to have as close to a normal relationship as possible. And for a while, it seemed to have worked. But trying to keep the reality of that other side of Hiccup's life away from her _hadn't, _and that was looking like a tipping point for the two.

After putting the shopping away and making them cups of tea - both one handed, but he had _years_ of practice struggling to use his hands - Hiccup made sure his mother went for her lie down, then headed to his own room to start the physio exercises he'd been shown before his operation. His hand was stiff and sore and still a little swollen, which made the exercises difficult to complete, but he was assured they would get easier. Unfortunately, Hiccup couldn't ask when he'd be able to hold a knife or something in it again, as that wasn't a normal question unless one was asking about dicing vegetables.

While he knew he should consider himself out of commission until his hand healed, Hiccup couldn't relax. Not with Viggo Grimborn out there. Something about Grimborn set him on edge, and Hiccup wasn't sure what it was, but he knew the man was far more dangerous than first appearances. And not just in a "could put me in prison" way. Right from the first time they saw each other, Hiccup knew the man was a threat, and it put him so on edge he struggled to keep his temper. _In the police station._

Ideally, he'd just kill the man and be done with it. But while he had not ruled it out entirely yet, Hiccup wasn't stupid, and he doubted Grimborn was just sitting around waiting to be jumped by a pissed off serial killer. Then again, the man seemed to have an ego that could fill the whole police station, so perhaps he thought he'd be able to handle Hiccup just fine.

At the very least, Hiccup knew he needed to wait for his hand to heal before he went after Grimborn.

He took a very brief nap, tired after the trip outside but too pent up to really relax into a long, restful slumber. Even that short respite from his thoughts didn't last, as Hiccup was stirred awake soon after he drifted off by the vibrating of his phone. Blinking blearily as he sat up, Hiccup yawned in to his 'good' hand before he reached for his phone. The text was from Astrid, and simply read: _"can I call you please?". _Well, that and one little x at the end, which Hiccup couldn't quite stop himself feeling a little happy about - assuming Astrid _meant _to leave the little kiss there, and didn't do it by accident or out of habit. Hiccup grabbed a drink before texting back an affirmative, curious what she could have wanted when they only saw each other the previous day.

His phone began ringing before long, Astrid's name flashing up across the screen, a picture of her smiling warmly coming up to match. He tapped 'answer' and 'speaker', then placed his phone on his leg.

"Hello?"

_"Hey. I know we're meant to be taking time to think, but I needed to speak to you, and didn't really think it should be recorded by text."_

Confused and a little concerned, Hiccup frowned at his phone.

"Uh, ok? What's so urgent?"

_"Well... bit weird, but also not that surprising now I think about it. I've been approached about writing a book about the kidnap and rescue Night Fury thing. It's good money, and I think I could probably negotiate for more, but... obviously, I'm not going to do it if you're not alright with it. Since you are quite prominently involved."_

Hiccup blinked a few times, surprised.

"Uh... wow. Okay then. I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't that. Can I have time to think about that?"

_"Sure. If it makes you feel better, I wouldn't submit anything you hadn't seen and approved."_

Hiccup nodded, though Astrid couldn't see him.

"Right. Thanks. You may as well keep negotiating while you wait though, just in case."

_"Yeah. I'm probably gonna try to go for an up front payment and a cut in sales too. I figure the Fury fanbase will be incredibly interested in it, plus the market in serial killers is big and the Night Fury is an active killer too."_

"Good plan. You mind if I go now? Only you woke me up."

_"Oh shit, sorry. Yeah, yeah, go ahead. I'll uh... talk to you some other time, I guess. Bye."_

Astrid hung up quite abruptly. Hiccup wondered if she was trying to ensure there was no lingering silence where her usual _love you _would have been said. Despite everything going on and his mixed feelings toward Astrid at that moment, Hiccup realise he missed hearing it.

Even though he'd ended their conversation to get more sleep, Hiccup found he couldn't fall back to sleep, so reluctantly got up and went to reheat something for lunch - in preparation for his surgery, he'd done a bunch of batch cooking so he and his mother were going to be able to eat while his hand healed. Hiccup missed cooking already, and was looking forward to being able to use a knife again for _that _too.

Hiccup relayed the phone call he'd had with Astrid to his mother when she woke up, putting off going for a bath which he knew was going to be a pain in the ass to do with only one leg and one good hand.

"Do you think you'll say yes to her?"

Valka asked between bites of re-heated lasagna. Hiccup shrugged.

"I don't know. I've let her use what I've done as inspiration for months now. Is it _that _different to let her write about the reality? She said she wouldn't send anything in until I'd seen and approved it. She could have just not said anything and let me find out when it was published."

"Well, she could have, but that would hardly have been a wise path to take when it involves someone with... anger issues."

Hiccup couldn't help but laugh at her, because _anger issues _was certainly putting it **mildly. **

"Maybe, but Astrid has had some lapses in judgement before. Like dating me."

His mother snickered, shaking her head.

"Well, I don't know that I'd call that a lapse. Until recently, the two of you seemed very happy together. And I always saw you taking good care of her."

"I tried, but I never really knew what I was doing. And none of that really changes the fact I'm a dangerous person to be around. Except for you."

Taking a minute to eat more of her food before it went cold, Valka laid her fork down and surveyed her son.

"Do you really think you'd hurt her?"

"I know that I _could. _And so does she. I don't want to, but I can't guarantee Astrid her safety and she's allowed to choose to be safer."

Valka reached over and squeezed his non-operated-on hand with her own, offered him a sad smile. Hiccup squeezed her back, not quite sure how he actually _felt _about the prospect of Astrid never being in his life again. A lot of feelings with her were entirely new - Hiccup had never fallen in love, or missed somebody, or even been physically attracted to anybody before her. He'd spent years quite content in that solitude with his mother. Was his life going to just go back to how it was pre-Astrid?

"Is this how you see your life going on indefinitely then? I know you've said you can't stop what you do, but do you ever think you might feel... done? As though you have finally done enough?"

She asked after another mouthful of food. Hiccup scratched the side of his face, itchy as he hadn't shaved. He was quite thankful his facial hair didn't grow all that much, as it meant he could put off having to shave for a little longer.

"Maybe? I don't know. I know that I don't feel that way _now, _and I'm not going to plan on some end date actually happening. I know you worry though. I won't stop being smart about it."

Valka hummed lightly.

"Just... be careful. I know you worry that I need you, and while that is true, it isn't why _I _worry about you."

"Yeah, I know, but knowing you need me is what keeps me just about sane enough to _be _careful."

Hiccup spent the rest of the day watching TV with his mother, before he reluctantly headed off for his bath. He was tired and frustrated by the end of trying to put on his prosthetic, dry himself off and dress with one hand, but at least he was clean. After they shared dinner, both he and his mother went to bed. Hiccup slept better than he had done before, though he was _very _aware of a need for pain relief when he woke, hand sore and stiff in its brace. Once he'd forced his way through some physio, Hiccup slumped down on the sofa and sighed. His mother was still sleeping, and so Hiccup had very little to do with himself.

Although he'd only hunted recently, Hiccup still found himself on the internet, checking on his list and trawling the forums to see what people were saying about him. The video of his rescuing Astrid and torching her kidnapper was still making the rounds, and Hiccup noticed the various stills that had been taken, analysing his height and build and the hidden strength it took to throw a grown man across the room.

Of course, looking at all those stills meant seeing Astrid. She was splattered with blood at various points, and some of the comments made about Astrid were _abhorrent,_ though many were met with reminders that the Night Fury had zero patience for that sort of thing.

As proved by the charred remains in the last few pictures.

Hiccup knew those images would never go away, passed around greedily amongst the more violent of fire fanatics for years to come. A few of the more motivated voyeurs had even made _animated gifs _of each time Hiccup stabbed the kidnapper. Even if Hiccup managed to kick his serial killing habit there and then, he was immortalised amongst gore-porn archives forever.

Still, it didn't look as though anyone had found anything particularly identifying aside from his tall, lanky frame. So Hiccup was content that he was safe to continue.

* * *

Returning to work was surreal - everyone knew why she'd been off, and after everything that had gone on in her life over the last few weeks, even walking in to the office felt like walking into another world.

She brushed off questions about what had happened, already regretting saying she was ready to go back that day. Her boss was sympathetic and said if it turned out she wasn't fully recovered, Astrid could go home early. Unfortunately, Astrid felt it might have been taking the piss just a bit if she made use of that right away.

Tired and irritable and, if she was honest, a little grumpy from lack of sex, Astrid dropped into her desk chair. She'd gone _longer_ without sex before, of course, but dating Hiccup for so long and having a pretty good sex life meant she was feeling it a lot. The uncertainty of their relationship was probably compounding the issue, undoubtedly.

Sighing deeply, Astrid scrubbed a hand over her face and turned on her computer. She scowled at the full brightness setting and immediately turned it down, wishing more than anything she was back at home in bed. More people kept trying to ask about what had happened to her, and Astrid ended up feigning a migraine just to get out of the office early. She felt a little guilty about lying, but then again her head was starting to ache. Probably from clenching her jaw in annoyance when nobody seemed to hear her say _"I don't want to talk about it!" _a dozen times...

Astrid still looked around warily as she headed through the street, fingers curled around her pepper spray in her pocket all the way to her front door. The paranoia was probably going to start getting to her, Astrid mused as her door locked nice and secure behind her. Grateful she was allowed some caffeine again, Astrid made herself a ridiculously indulgent and sweet coffee, then changed back into her pyjamas and curled up on the sofa to stare at her phone, debating whether or not she was ready to talk to Hiccup again. She missed him, but Astrid wasn't going to make a snap decision on spending her life with a serial killer because she was feeling sexually frustrated. Her libido had made a few too many decisions for her when it came to Hiccup already.

When Heather visited her that evening, she found Astrid's debate of sex versus safety _highly _amusing. At least, until Astrid threw bread at her.

"It's not funny!"

Heather snickered as she retrieved the bread from the floor, placing it to one side to throw out after they were done with dinner.

"It is a little funny. But you're being smart to think about it. Not really a decision you want to rush."

"Yes, I know. But I still miss him, and I don't feel all that safe anyway with Grimborn stalking me. I never needed to carry pepper spray before, and I've been dating Hiccup for ages!"

Astrid gestured with the little cannister, then put it down before she accidentally sprayed one of them with the thing.

"Grimborn is only interested in you _because _you are one of two ways to get to Hiccup. And his mother is much tougher to get to, since she never leaves the house without him."

Conceding her friends point, Astrid sighed.

"Yeah, but still. Just ironic that I consider breaking up with my serial murdering boyfriend for my safety, only to gain a stalker I am quite certain is also a killer."

Heather looked over at her, expression curious..

"Does Grimborn give you murder vibes? I've only met him once. He's kind of... intense."

"Definitely. Maybe he hasn't killed anyone yet, but I am completely certain he could, and I wouldn't be surprised to find out he already had."

Frowning, Heather picked up some bread that hadn't been used as a weapon, breaking it in to smaller pieces.

"Do you two just attract bad cops? I mean, you guys fucked that Hunter guy, even though he was pretty sure one of you was the killer right from the start."

Eret seemed like _so _long ago by then. Ironically, her life had been much simpler then, even with the threesomes they had with the officer investigating Hiccup's murders.

"Maybe. Personally, I think Grimborn is a little _too _interested in the Night Fury."

Astrid reached for her drink, feeling like Grimborn was _just _as into serial killers as Astrid. And Astrid could personally attest that her fascination had gone beyond unhealthy a while back, so she was qualified to say Grimborn was _too _interested in the Night Fury. His interest didn't feel entirely professional, though she didn't think Grimborn had any intention of trying to _fuck_ Hiccup.

She knew Hiccup wouldn't go for that anyway - he _hated _Grimborn. He'd at least been interested in Eret, even if their trysts hadn't been the most sensible choice. Astrid hoped Eret was doing alright. He _had _helped Hiccup find her, after all.

Work the next day was a _little _less stressful - she suspected her boss had told the others to lay off with the questions, as everyone looked a bit mollified and she was not quizzed again, but Astrid was still getting used to her early mornings and not spending all day in pyjamas eating pastry and hating the lengthy recovery for concussions.

Her afternoon and evening went even slower than the day before, as Heather wasn't there to keep her company and Astrid had already told her mother not to come over. She knew boredom was a bad motivation to call her boyfriend, so Astrid instead opted to pick up her notebook. Writing hadn't been a major part of her days despite so much free time, as focusing on one spot for too long had hurt her head, and in the first couple of weeks, Astrid couldn't even remember all the things she'd planned to write in her next book anyway.

She jotted down some notes for her own book series, but her mind was elsewhere. Placing that notebook down, Astrid crossed over to the cupboard where she kept the dozen or so brand new notebooks she absolutely _needed _and picked one out. It was black with red glitter on, and she'd picked it up because it made her think of Hiccup's Night Fury outfit covered in blood. Given her choice in writing material, it seemed an inspiring choice.

Sitting down with it, Astrid started writing down things that she wanted to put in her first non-fiction - the one she'd been approached about writing that described her encounter with a kidnapper and a serial killer. Hiccup hadn't agreed she _could _do it, and Astrid was still in negotiations over it, but she couldn't ignore the inspiration when it struck.

Twelve whole pages and a sore wrist later, Astrid yawned and was surprised to see how much time she'd spent hunched over the book, which explained her aches and pains. After a quick shower and a snack, she checked her door was definitely locked, made sure her windows were closed and crawled into bed. The writing had been quite cathartic, much like being able to talk to Heather about who Hiccup was had been. She felt a little lighter as she fell asleep, though she _still _really missed Hiccup, and doubted that was going to change any time soon.

A couple of days later, Astrid checked the calendar up on her kitchen wall. It had all Hiccup's surgery and post-op appointments written on still, since she'd been meant to accompany him before the whole.. not-quite break up stage they were still in. She noticed he had another appointment that day, and wondered if he'd mind her texting just to find out how his recovery was going.

Resolving to at least leave it until the afternoon when he'd have actually gone to the appointment, Astrid headed to work. She couldn't keep Hiccup off her mind, but was still early enough in her return to work that nobody expected her to be completely on form performance-wise.

As she went home later that day, Astrid felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickling, and kept looking around expecting to see Grimborn behind her. She never spotted him - he'd been happy enough to let her see him before, which made her suspect he enjoyed making her feel watched, making her feel _vulnerable_ again. Clutching the cannister in her pocket so tightly it hurt her hand, Astrid's heart thrummed anxiously in her chest as she unlocked her front door. She locked it behind her, letting out a breath and heading toward the living room.

"Hello Astrid."

-HTTYD-

**I was *almost done* with this three hours and a thousand words ago... but by now y'all know I have a habit of rambling. **


End file.
